Earthquake in Turkey: Two buildings stand totally intact in the heart of destruction

There are two buildings standing without any damage in the Hayrullah Neighborhood called “the navel of destruction” in Kahramanmaraş. One belongs to the Chamber of Architects and the other to the Chamber of Civil Engineers. As the branch heads explain the reasons for this, they say “It has nothing to do with a miracle.”

Many can see on social media a photo of a building taken with a drone right in the middle of the destruction in Kahramanmaraş. Everybody was curious how this structure could survive without any damage when the whole place around was in ruins. In fact, there is not one of these buildings, but there are two, 200 meters apart.

The journalist writing the news shares the rest of the story down below.

“One is the headquarters of the Kahramanmaraş Chamber of Architects (TMMOB) branch, the other is the headquarters of the Chamber of Civil Engineers Branch. In other words, constructions designed by architects and civil engineers in accordance with the regulations. The place where the centers are located is the Hayrullah Neighborhood, which is called the “center of destruction”. It is impossible to reach the buildings by car. You can get there by crossing the ruins. Construction machinery is working on all sides and it is impossible to see anything in the dust. There are families on all sides who have been pulled out of the rubble and put in transport bags, crying before their funerals. They are waiting for the funeral vehicles to reach here. We are meeting with Yunus Emre Kaçamaz, President of the Chamber of Architects Branch, at the branch.”

Standing firm in the heart of destruction

THERE IS NOT A SINGLE CRACK

Not the slightest crack is noticeable inside, as well as outside the building.

The president of the chamber shares information officially announced by authorities; “As of yesterday morning, the total loss of life is 9,454. it is estimated that as many as 2 thousand people are under the rubble. These numbers do not include the records of the mufti’s office, the people’s own burials in the villages. The number of injured rescued is 9 thousand 379. The destroyed building is 5 bin 101. 400 teams are urgently carrying out damage detection work for buildings that need to be demolished. Previously, the rubble of the building was being moved to another place, a search for materials and valuables was being carried out in that area. In this earthquake, unlike the previous ones, first the property owners will be given a search permit, then the excavation will be moved.”

THE RIGHT IRON AND WORKMANSHIP

The journalist continues to share: “I ask Kaçamaz, who also lost his brother’s fiancée in the earthquake, why such a view appeared and how these two buildings could remain undamaged at all. He shares following in reply”

“This picture is a product of the ‘strong beam-weak column’ logic in the pre-1999 regulations. In other words, the decking is thick and heavy, and the columns that carry them are weak. In the shaking, heavy beams overlap each other, crushing the columns. This applies to the majority of the destroyed buildings. After 2012, the building inspection system came, and in 2020, the pool system was created. There is completely correct supervision at the moment. Both this building in which we are sitting and the building of our neighbor, the Chamber of Civil Engineers, are standing because they were built with the right iron, the right ground integration and the right workmanship in this direction.

MAXIMUM 5 PERCENT PROFIT WHEN STEALING FROM THE MATERIAL

The owner of the other building, Buğra Dalkiran, president of the Kahramanmaraş Chamber of Civil Engineers, stated that the survival of the structures had nothing to do with a miracle. He went on to say, “If a building is built in accordance with the specifications, it is not a miracle that it remains intact. Most of the destroyed structures around us were built in the 90s, and the concrete quality is also low.”

I remind Dalkıran of the arrested, illegal contractors and ask how much profit can be made by stealing materials from a building. “The rough construction cost of a building is 35-40 percent of the total cost. Even if you steal from this, you can make a profit of 3-5 percent at most if you steal. So these are very, very small benefits…”

SOURCE: hurriyet.com.tr/gundem/yikimin-gobeginde-sapasaglam-ayakta-42218976? (Translated)
Original news post and photo by SAVAŞ ÖZBEY (of Hürriyet) – MANY THANKS