Marmara earthquake victims commemorated on 11th anniversary

In Sakarya, one of the areas most affected, hundreds joined the ceremony to commemorate the dead in the city’s Kent Square. The ceremony started with the reading of poems and a slide show. There were also prayers and Quran recitations in honor of the victims, followed by a minute of silence at 3:02 a.m., the exact time the earthquake hit on Aug. 17 11 years ago. The ceremony was organized by the Sakarya Municipality. The city’s governor, Mustafa Büyük, City Council President Arif Aruca, general manager of tea manufacturer ÇAYKUR Ekrem Yüce and hundreds of residents participated in the memorial.

Governor Büyük said the earthquake had seriously affected Adapazarı, Sakarya’s central district. “Although I did not live through this earthquake, I have seen its effects. Now, I have taken on the responsibility of educating the public, preparing them and taking the necessary measures against a potential earthquake. There are things that every province absolutely must do so that no one ever experiences this unforgettable pain again.” He also provided information on Sakarya’s earthquake-preparedness program and what was being done about buildings that were in need of reinforcement.

Most of the participants were unable to hold back tears as slides of pictures taken right after the quake were shown on a large screen. Nevin Eralp, who lost her husband in the earthquake, hugged her 17-year-old daughter Elif and wept. “We are always reliving the pain of the earthquake. I am still afraid to walk into tall buildings. I moved to Germany after the earthquake, but I can’t enter tall buildings there, either,” she said.

Another ceremony was held in İzmit, Kocaeli, also badly affected by the earthquake. Members of the Kocaeli Earthquake Victims Association, the Turkish Union of Engineers and Architects’ Chambers (TMMOB) and residents of the city met in front of the central bank’s Kocaeli branch and marched with torches to Anıtpark along Yürüyüş Road. The group chanted slogans such as “Earthquakes don’t kill, negligence does” and “İzmit wake up; don’t let the earthquake be forgotten.” Drivers also showed their support for the group.

In a statement made in front of the Earthquake Monument in Anıtpark, TMMOB President Mehmet Soğancı said: “We lost tens of thousands of our loved ones. We were stabbed in the heart. A simple event of nature turned into a disaster because of the realities of this country. We, those gathered here today, want to express our anger. We have not forgotten the earthquake, and we will not let it be forgotten.”

Remembering their loved ones, relatives of the dead could not hold back tears while visiting graveyards. Zeynel Özyaşar lost his wife, son, daughter-in-law and two grandchildren in the earthquake 11 years ago.

He also said 96 percent of Turkey is considered an earthquake zone. “We are saying that earthquakes resulting in this kind of disaster cannot, and should not, be the fate of our people.” The group had a minute of silence for the victims at 3.02 a.m.

In other activities in Kocaeli, there was the opening of a photography exhibit by the Anatolia news agency titled “Kocaeli That Night.” The activities took place at the Kocaeli fairgrounds. Governor Ercan Topaca in a speech emphasized the importance of educating the new generation to be earthquake aware.

In Yalova, where 2,504 people died, residents gathered in front of the Earthquake Monument and laid flowers on the concrete blocks which bear the names of the victims. Thousands of Yalova residents gathered around the monument throughout the night as the provincial mufti’s office and the municipality organized a ceremony to commemorate the dead.

There was also a march in Yalova, where nearly 1,500 members of TMMOB-affiliated chambers walked in support of earthquake awareness. The chamber members also laid flowers at the monuments. The group held banners reading “We are sleeping, you are sleeping, they have put us to sleep” and “Negligence, not earthquakes, kills.” The group called for a restructuring of legislation regulating the issuance of building permits as well as the determination of zoning. The group ended their march with a minute of silence at 3:02 to commemorate those who died.