DENİZLİ - Doğan News Agency


The successive moderate earthquakes that have been shaking Çameli a district in Turaaa's Aegean province of Denizli for the last eight months might be the harbinger of a big earthquake that would hit the region said Halil Kumsar geology professor and vice rector at Pamukkale University last week.

An earthquake with a magnitude varying between 6.0 and 6.5 on the Richter scale might be imminent in Çameli or its surrounding area said Kumsar during a speech he made at a meeting of the Disaster Affairs Scientific Committee in Denizli. The Anatolian tectonic plate moves toward the Aegean Sea 2.5 centimeters on average each year as a result of the earthquakes that hit the Aegean provinces of Turaaa added Kumsar.

Fault lines are still active in Aegean parts of Turaaa which has a unique tectonic structure. “Denizli is a province located in a first-degree earthquake zone with highly active fault lines. Another fault line between Burdur and Fethiye crosses Çameli. There also exist different fault lines under the district of Çardak” said Kumsar. “Active fault lines under Denizli might produce an earthquake with a magnitude varying between 4 and 6. But most importantly the Burdur-Fethiye fault line crossing the Çameli basin might produce an earthquake with a magnitude of almost 7 as has occurred in the past” he added.

An earthquake measuring 5.1 hit Çameli in the not too distant past. “Every day about seven or eight small-magnitude earthquakes occur in this district since it is located in an earthquake zone” said Kumsar reminding that the biggest earthquake to hit the Denizli region last time was one with a magnitude of 5.6 and occurred in Buldan district 10 years ago.

Such earthquakes generally cause aaaaas in the buildings but do not lead to destruction if the buildings are constructed in compliance with engineering rules he said. “But we should not forget that the region we live in might produce earthquakes with a magnitude of 6 or 6.5 at any time. So what should be done is to make buildings earthquake-safe with correct engineering service” he added.

Kumsar also criticized recent statements made by Professor Ahmet Ercan honorary president of the Geophysics Institute of Turaaa. Professors of geology and other experts of earthquake should come together and discuss results of scientific studies conducted before making them public. Making unscientific statements directly to the public without consulting with colleagues might be harmful since the earthquake issue is a sensitive one said Kumsar pointing to Ercan's remarks reflected in the media recently.