5 December 2009 / TODAY’S ZAMAN, İSTANBUL
The western province of Aydın was shaken early Friday morning by two minor earthquakes and aftershocks, which caused no fatalities, with the tremors also being felt in the neighboring province of Denizli.
The quakes’ epicenters, according to Boğaziçi University’s Kandilli Observatory and Earthquake Research Institute, were located in the Buharkent district of Aydın and were reported to be five kilometers underground. The first earthquake, with a magnitude of 4.9, hit the district at 8:02 a.m., while the second one, with a magnitude of 3.2, occurred nine minutes later. Seven aftershocks were felt with magnitudes ranging from 3.1 to 3.5. In Denizli, the quakes caused minor cracks in the walls of a number of structures, including the building of the governor’s office, while the chimney of a house collapsed on top of a car, causing the roof to collapse in the Saltak neighborhood. Governor Yavuz Erkmen told the Anatolia news agency that they established a crisis management center and that they were following developments. The town of Horsunlu in the Buharkent district also felt the temblors. The mayor of Horsunlu said the earthquakes did not cause any damage in the town.
Earthquake conference in İstanbul
Academics and experts from Turkey and 25 other countries will gather in İstanbul to attend an international symposium titled “İstanbul International Conference on Seismic Risk Mitigation” between Dec. 8 and 10. UN Assistant Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction Margareta Wahlström will give the opening speech at the conference, which will begin with a ceremony to be attended by Deputy Prime Minister Cemil Çiçek. During the sessions that will extend for three days, studies being carried out in Turkey relating to the earthquakes of 1999 will be discussed in detail.
