Why did the earthquake in Turkey Syria cause so much destruction 3 big reasons

Two countries of the world are currently facing a major disaster. More than 12 thousand people have died so far in the devastating earthquake that hit Türkiye and Syria on Monday. Thousands of people are injured. Buried under the debris. Relief teams from countries all over the world are reaching Türkiye and Syria to help the people fighting for their lives. The earthquake that occurred in Türkiye and Syria is considered to be one of the biggest earthquakes. The question arises why was this earthquake so deadly?

One of Live Science Report An attempt has been made to tell this. The epicenter of the earthquake that hit Türkiye and Syria was near the city of Nurhagi in southern Türkiye, reports say. It has been described as the third deadliest earthquake of the last century. Why did this earthquake become so deadly? Why was the loss of life and property on such a large scale?

In the report, the reason for this has been said to be the tectonic plates of this area, soft soil and lack of proper construction of earthquake resistant buildings. It has been written that the area of ​​southeast Türkiye and northwest Syria is sensitive to earthquakes. The region is located at the junction of three giant tectonic plates. These plates are African, Anatolian and Arabian. Due to these collisions and snagging, earthquakes occur in the area.

Monday’s earthquake is believed to be caused by the East Anatolian Fault, where the Arabian and Anatolian plates are locked together by friction. The report says that after slowly moving away in opposite directions for several decades, the tension between the two plates became so great that their contact point became ‘strike slip’. Because of this a big earthquake occurred in the area. Some scientists have estimated that this stress on the East Anatolian Fault may have been building for centuries, about 300 years.

One reason for the earthquake’s devastation is that the East Anatolian Fault is located beneath the dense population of Türkiye and Syria. The earthquake that occurred on Monday was less deep. It was just 18 kilometers below the earth’s surface. This simply means that the earthquake’s energy completely surfaced and started shaking the houses.

The foundation of the buildings was affected due to shaking. The report says that the soil of this area is quite moist and cannot withstand a dangerous earthquake. The loss of life and property due to this earthquake was more because the earthquake occurred early in the morning, when most of the people were sleeping. They would not have had time to escape.