Minister urges mobilization for earthquake resilience in Istanbul
ISTANBUL
The urbanization minister has issued a call for cooperation between the government and municipalities to undertake a comprehensive overhaul of Istanbul’s building stock in the face of earthquake risks.
“Istanbul ranks at the very top among high-risk regions. There are 600,000 residential units in urgent need of renewal,” Murat Kurum said at a high-level summit convened in Istanbul on May 8 to discuss the urban transformation in the city.
Although the 6.2 magnitude earthquake on April 23 did not result in casualties or major damage, it reignited public anxiety in the megacity of over 16 million residents, where scientists have long warned of a potentially devastating seismic event.
“This is not an issue that can be politicized or turned into propaganda. We have always emphasized that earthquake preparedness transcends politics. Everyone must take responsibility during this process,” Kurum said.
He invited Nuri Aslan, Istanbul’s acting mayor who was appointed after Ekrem İmamoğlu’s arrest in late March over corruption allegations, as well as all 39 district mayors, to attend the summit.
Kurum emphasized that the government has already invested 450 billion Turkish Liras ($14 billion) into Istanbul’s earthquake preparedness and urged municipalities to allocate a portion of their own budgets for the same purpose.
“I’m saying let’s not organize concerts or public events. Let’s redirect our entire budget to this critical cause,” he added.
“Let’s do this together, without political divisions. Our nation demands a safer, stronger Istanbul,” Kurum urged.
Acknowledging the inevitability of a major earthquake, Kurum stressed that the government would not passively wait for disaster to strike.
“An earthquake is expected in Istanbul — but we will not sit idly by. We will accelerate our public housing projects,” he said.
He also provided figures from post-quake inspections, noting that 452,000 homes and workplaces were assessed following the April 23 earthquake. Of these, 354,000 were found to be undamaged, while 61,000 independent units sustained minor damage.
