Speaking on a program on the private news channel CNN Türk yesterday, Yıldırım noted that the level of rainfall is similar to that experienced during major flooding that took place in 1929. Discussing the factors that led to flooding, the minister said existing drainage channels have proven to be insufficient, serving instead as a sort of barrier holding in floodwater.
Yıldırım said the worst flooding in İstanbul occurred around the Ayamama stream, adding, however, that the stream is only part of the problem. "The Ayamama stream is a consequence. You have to consider the entire incident, the whole of İstanbul. Even though you take whatever measures you can, such as enlarging the stream fivefold or making it twice as deep, water finds a way if you do not have the adequate infrastructure in other places. When water reaches those parts, they prove to be insufficient," he said. “The problem is not only about the Ayamama stream. Several measures have been taken with respect to it, but the real problem is the non-compliance with standards in places from the coast to the north and from the east to the west. There are no problems concerning the highways as they were built according to international standards. However, there are other smaller roads connecting to the highways and there are local roads and bridges. Since these roads and bridges were planned according to the needs of the time, they are completely ineffective during a disaster. This is the heart of the matter.”
Minister Yıldırım further maintained that major mistakes have been made in Turkey, and in İstanbul in particular. “We have made and continue to make these mistakes. We have only recently started to come to our senses. But this is too late.
Before completing infrastructure projects, we started superstructure projects. The order is wrong,” he said. He indicated that similar situations are not seen in other countries.
“First, people here find a piece of land and divide it into lots and construct buildings on it. Then, they start to think about how to provide sewerage, waste, water, electricity, natural gas and other utilities to them. In other countries, the land is developed first. Land is selected, and it is divided into lots and then drainage channels are built for common usage. Certain design standards are imposed on buildings. Even the color of their exterior is fixed in advance. Without such planning, these [disasters] are inevitable. We experienced it today, and we will experience it in the future,” he said.
The minister pointed out that preparatory measures taken against disasters serve to minimize the damage done by those events. “It is not possible to prevent them, but we should not be desperate. Despair is the result of the errors we make. Both the administration and the citizens are at fault. We collectively pave the way for such disasters,” he noted.
