Turkey's shoddy building codes


1999: Tough building regulations introduced after 7.6 magnitude Izmit earthquake kills more than 17,000 people

GREECE
Istanbul
Most severe
Ankara
Kahramanmaras
Gaziantep
Adana
Antalya
TURKEY
Aleppo 
SYRIA
Antakya
Beirut, LEBANON
200km 125 miles


2003-14: As prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (above) and local officials support construction boom to modernise Turkey and lift millions out of poverty

Aug 2014: Erdoğan wins presidential election

2018: Shortly before presidential and parliamentary elections, government grants vote-winning amnesty to companies that breach building codes

2018-20: Amnesty approves 7.4 million building applications, raising about $4.2 billion in fees

2021: Chamber of Geological Engineers warns that more than half of all buildings in Turkey – accounting for some 13 million apartments – violate building codes
        
2023: Death toll from Feb 6 earthquakes in Turkey and Syria climbs above 41,000
        

Sources: Associated Press, Financial Times, Reuters 
Pictures: Getty Images 
© GRAPHIC NEWS