It is very difficult to predict when a new earthquake will occur. We don’t know if we will experience another big earthquake today, tomorrow or 10 years from now. However, we all know that our country has active fault lines and passes as an earthquake zone. For this reason, we need to take our precautions before the earthquake comes.
We have seen in the earthquakes in Kahramanmaraş that many people still do not know what to do before, after and during the earthquake. We reached the authorities of AKUT and asked what we should do. Let’s start with what we should do before the earthquake.
Reduce risks in the home with hazard hunting. How is danger hunting done?
- Fix tall items such as a bookcase, TV unit or wardrobe to the wall.
- Check if your building complies with regulations and standards.
- Keep beds in children’s rooms away from items that can tip over and windows.
- Check the location of the installations to shut them down in case of a possible earthquake.
- Mirror, picture frame and chandeliers; mount it to the concrete with hooks, screws and dowels.
- Stoves, cookers, electric stoves, natural gas stoves and similar heat sources used in homes and workplaces; Fix it to the wall, ceiling and floor by its feet and pipes, if any.
- Take precautions to prevent the materials inside the furniture, such as a bookcase or TV unit, from falling.
- Secure tall filing cabinets in the workplace, and keep doors and drawers locked so that they cannot be opened by jolting when not in use.
- Have fire extinguishers in homes and workplaces. Position it in an easily accessible place and fix it with the fixing belt.
- Keep the chemicals and cleaning materials used in homes and workplaces as far away from each other as possible, in their original containers with the lids closed.
- Build an Emergency Kit, taking into account the 72 hours that are the golden hours after the earthquake and the 72 hours it may take for help to reach us. Keep the bag close to the exit point of the house, where everyone can see it and easily accessible.
- Create an emergency plan with your family for disasters and emergencies. Plan where you will meet and what you will do before you get there.
- Get Compulsory Earthquake Insurance TCIP, which is a legal obligation.
During the earthquake…
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Do not use stairs and elevators. Do not try to exit the building or jump out of the balcony or window.
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Perform the LAY-PROTECT-HOLD or CRASH-STOCK-HOLD application next to an item that is fixed and whose center of gravity is close to the ground (armchair, sofa, bed, table, etc.) depending on the area you are in.
How to make YAT-PROTECT-HOLD?
Lie on your side, pull your knees to your stomach, protect your head with your upper hand, and hold onto the object you are lying next to with your lower hand.
How to apply COP-STOP-HOLD?
Get down on your knees; While bending your head towards your knees, protect your neck and head with one hand and hold on to the object next to you with the other hand.
- If you are in the open area when the earthquake occurs, away from trees, power poles, driveways and buildings, collapse with one knee on the ground, do the collapse-and-snap movement by protecting your head with your arms. Remember, you can observe your surroundings as you are in the open area while doing this movement.
After the earthquake…
- Stick to the Disaster and Emergency Plan of your location. If you are at home during the earthquake, take your emergency bag and go to the meeting place or meeting area you have determined beforehand.
- Follow the instructions given by the authorities.
- Try to use your phone as little as possible. As the lines can be locked, it may be difficult for search and rescue teams to get news.
- Stay away from buildings and road crevices that you think are damaged. If you think that there is damage to your building, do not go inside without having your building checked by experts.
- Try to follow ‘as much as possible’ official announcements from radio and television broadcasts. Do not trust information that you are not sure of its accuracy, do not share this information.
- Act in coordination with authorized institutions and organizations.
- When the authorities report that the danger has passed and it is possible to return to the undamaged houses, you can return to your homes by having the experts check the electricity, gas and water installations.
Editor Note:
In the exercises, they showed us all what to do at every moment of the earthquake, we learned. When we actually encountered an earthquake, many of us panicked and still do. However, we knew from our childhood what we had to do.
In other words, even though we know and have learned, we can forget what we know ‘at that moment’. That’s why today we have only reminded what we know or what we have forgotten. We would like to thank the authorities of AKUT again for supporting us in this content.
For evacuation points in earthquake zones:
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