Flash Floods - Nature"s Vengeance
In the character of things, sometimes reaction follow only when disaster strikes, i.e. when it is too late. As disasters leave their mortal impact, and once thus many innocent people lost their lives, there will be finger-pointing and clamor for blood. Such was the case with the recent flash floods in Istanbul. Since 1967, Istanbul suffered 13 floods which inevitably caused havoc and destruction in and around the city. Apparently there were no flood mitigation measures place into place prior to the flash floods in September 2009. The last floods in 2002, despite the experience, had not prompted any rethinking of policies vis-?-vis urban planning. It's described as a "weather-related accident waiting to happen". What happened went beyond the term accident; it turned out to be a horrendous disaster. (i)
At the worst stage of the torrential rains, access into sections of Istanbul together with the highway that links to Istanbul Ataturk International Airport was cut-off. When the 2 Istanbul streams burst their banks, homes and workplaces within the adjoining areas were severely flooded, with extensive damage to property and infrastructure. Within the raging floods, roads become quick flowing rivers drowning several trapped enroute to work. The surging waters flipped trucks and buses over like matchsticks, crushing them into piles of debris. The disaster struck low-lying areas on the western aspect of Turkey's largest town where drainage is typically poor. The surging flash floods, moved at high speed, barreling across a major highway and into Istanbul's busy business districts and in the method trapping factory employees and truck drivers in their vehicles. Lots of homes and offices were flooded, in some places the waters two meters high. Emergency authorities confirmed that some one,700 homes and offices were flooded in Istanbul's suburbs of Silivri.
The damages incurred were once more fresh reminders to exercise care when designing urban development plans. Poor urban planning will clearly end in inadequate infrastructure and when compounded by rapid population growth, the urban risks increase in magnitude. The Istanbul Chamber of Commerce assessed that the damages caused by the flash floods ranged from $80 million to $ninety million.
The Istanbul Meteorology Department said that the rainfall was the heaviest recorded within the last eighty years. It absolutely was apparent that Istanbul's creaking infrastructure was unable to address the surge of water. Skewed and unplanned development plus inadequate infrastructure have resulted in water flows being obstructed from reaching the ocean through natural channels. The authorities acknowledged that the disaster "may be a result of nice negligence" attributed to spates of illegal construction in riverbeds in Istanbul. Exercising nice care in designing infrastructure and concrete areas become a lot of important particularly in the case of Istanbul, which is situated on the steep banks of the Bosphorus Straits.
Istanbul's speedy population growth had been fueled by decades of rural-urban migration from impoverished regions. Hence, the town, a metropolis of fifteen million has developed without adequate infrastructure to accommodate even a moderate rainfall. Turkey's Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan called the floods "the disaster of the century". While blaming the high death toll on record rainfall he additionally pointed the finger on developers who made buildings in vulnerable riverbeds and flood plains. Erdogan quoted a native saying "the river's revenge will be sturdy". Many urban planning consultants said government officials conjointly are partly chargeable for the high death toll. Istanbul's Chamber of Architects alleged that town's administration created these conditions by permitting high density construction within the affected areas. The Chamber sought a court injunction but failed to succeed in preventing construction of commercial and industrial zones in western districts of Istanbul round the Ayamama River, where a lot of of the flood occurred. Unable to be absorbed by the ground, the water rises since the riverbeds have been became concrete channels together with the buildings around it. And already there are recent warnings of larger disasters.
The prime factors of flash floods have repeatedly been attributed to unplanned urbanization and the ensuing erosion. Inadequate drainage systems and improper land use add on to the risks involved. Uncontrolled construction in a very lax atmosphere of urban planning without careful consideration for risk reduction may be a recipe for disaster. The weight and force of any pressure applied to the acute limits will eventually break the walls of resistance. Any Town Coming up with student knows that with extreme pressure, dams would break; sewers burst their embankments, whereas the roads and streets flip into overflowing deadly waterways.
Hence, rapid urbanization ought to be sustained on city coming up with tracks, the development to infrastructural facilities designed equivalent to desires and therefore the population growth. Urban development has its own risks. Left uncontrolled, unplanned and un-managed it can be disastrous eventuality.
Surprisingly, Turkey is no stranger to flash floods. Reports prepared by the Ministry of Public Works' General Directorate of Disaster Affairs and State Waterworks Authority (DSI) revealed that floods are the second most damaging sort of disaster in the country. Consistent with the report, 287 floods have occurred in Turkey in the past 20 years. Major flood disasters are again not new for Turkey.
The International Emergency Disasters Database (EM-DAT) indicated that between 1903 and 2003, Turkey experienced thirty two major floods. The economic loss over the past 20 years is estimated to be $2 billion. The impact of these floods on development, economic growth may be an incredible drag. With the flood situations being oft repeated events, it noteworthy to know that the Turkish authorities spends $thirty million every year for infrastructural measures to forestall flooding. The flash flood prevention programme that DSI implemented since 1970 apparently achieved in reducing the quantity of annual flash floods significantly.(ii) That may be the case for the countrywide flood prevention programme, however the disastrous scenes in Istanbul clearly indicate that any deficiencies in mitigating measures will soon lash back with fury.
At the worst stage of the torrential rains, access into sections of Istanbul together with the highway that links to Istanbul Ataturk International Airport was cut-off. When the 2 Istanbul streams burst their banks, homes and workplaces within the adjoining areas were severely flooded, with extensive damage to property and infrastructure. Within the raging floods, roads become quick flowing rivers drowning several trapped enroute to work. The surging waters flipped trucks and buses over like matchsticks, crushing them into piles of debris. The disaster struck low-lying areas on the western aspect of Turkey's largest town where drainage is typically poor. The surging flash floods, moved at high speed, barreling across a major highway and into Istanbul's busy business districts and in the method trapping factory employees and truck drivers in their vehicles. Lots of homes and offices were flooded, in some places the waters two meters high. Emergency authorities confirmed that some one,700 homes and offices were flooded in Istanbul's suburbs of Silivri.
The damages incurred were once more fresh reminders to exercise care when designing urban development plans. Poor urban planning will clearly end in inadequate infrastructure and when compounded by rapid population growth, the urban risks increase in magnitude. The Istanbul Chamber of Commerce assessed that the damages caused by the flash floods ranged from $80 million to $ninety million.
The Istanbul Meteorology Department said that the rainfall was the heaviest recorded within the last eighty years. It absolutely was apparent that Istanbul's creaking infrastructure was unable to address the surge of water. Skewed and unplanned development plus inadequate infrastructure have resulted in water flows being obstructed from reaching the ocean through natural channels. The authorities acknowledged that the disaster "may be a result of nice negligence" attributed to spates of illegal construction in riverbeds in Istanbul. Exercising nice care in designing infrastructure and concrete areas become a lot of important particularly in the case of Istanbul, which is situated on the steep banks of the Bosphorus Straits.
Istanbul's speedy population growth had been fueled by decades of rural-urban migration from impoverished regions. Hence, the town, a metropolis of fifteen million has developed without adequate infrastructure to accommodate even a moderate rainfall. Turkey's Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan called the floods "the disaster of the century". While blaming the high death toll on record rainfall he additionally pointed the finger on developers who made buildings in vulnerable riverbeds and flood plains. Erdogan quoted a native saying "the river's revenge will be sturdy". Many urban planning consultants said government officials conjointly are partly chargeable for the high death toll. Istanbul's Chamber of Architects alleged that town's administration created these conditions by permitting high density construction within the affected areas. The Chamber sought a court injunction but failed to succeed in preventing construction of commercial and industrial zones in western districts of Istanbul round the Ayamama River, where a lot of of the flood occurred. Unable to be absorbed by the ground, the water rises since the riverbeds have been became concrete channels together with the buildings around it. And already there are recent warnings of larger disasters.
The prime factors of flash floods have repeatedly been attributed to unplanned urbanization and the ensuing erosion. Inadequate drainage systems and improper land use add on to the risks involved. Uncontrolled construction in a very lax atmosphere of urban planning without careful consideration for risk reduction may be a recipe for disaster. The weight and force of any pressure applied to the acute limits will eventually break the walls of resistance. Any Town Coming up with student knows that with extreme pressure, dams would break; sewers burst their embankments, whereas the roads and streets flip into overflowing deadly waterways.
Hence, rapid urbanization ought to be sustained on city coming up with tracks, the development to infrastructural facilities designed equivalent to desires and therefore the population growth. Urban development has its own risks. Left uncontrolled, unplanned and un-managed it can be disastrous eventuality.
Surprisingly, Turkey is no stranger to flash floods. Reports prepared by the Ministry of Public Works' General Directorate of Disaster Affairs and State Waterworks Authority (DSI) revealed that floods are the second most damaging sort of disaster in the country. Consistent with the report, 287 floods have occurred in Turkey in the past 20 years. Major flood disasters are again not new for Turkey.
The International Emergency Disasters Database (EM-DAT) indicated that between 1903 and 2003, Turkey experienced thirty two major floods. The economic loss over the past 20 years is estimated to be $2 billion. The impact of these floods on development, economic growth may be an incredible drag. With the flood situations being oft repeated events, it noteworthy to know that the Turkish authorities spends $thirty million every year for infrastructural measures to forestall flooding. The flash flood prevention programme that DSI implemented since 1970 apparently achieved in reducing the quantity of annual flash floods significantly.(ii) That may be the case for the countrywide flood prevention programme, however the disastrous scenes in Istanbul clearly indicate that any deficiencies in mitigating measures will soon lash back with fury.