Turkey tremorTurkish PM criticizes builders for unsafe practices
Sunday’s 7.2 tremor in Turkey killed at least 460 people, injured 1,350, destroyed more than 2,000 buildings, and displaced thousands; Turkish prime minister harshly criticizes Turkish builders, saying negligence amounts to murder
In the wake of the 7.2 tremor which hit Turkey on Sunday, killing at least 460 people, injuring 1,350, destroying more than 2,000 buildings, and displacing thousands, Turkey prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan harshly criticizes Turkish builders for shoddy practices.
UKPA quotes him to say that “When we look at the wreckage, we see how the material used is of bad quality…. We see that people pay the price for concrete that virtually turned to sand, or for weakened concrete blocks on the ground floors. Municipalities, constructors and supervisors should now see that their negligence amounts to murder. Despite all previous disasters, we see that the appeals were not heeded.”
The Guardian summarized Erdogan’s words more vividly: “Turkey earthquake: building negligence amounts to murder, says Erdogan” the newspaper’s headline read.
Israel, a country with Turkey has been increasingly at odds, has joined other countries in rushing aid to the Turkish victims – a gesture the Turkish government welcomed. Reuters reports that both Israel and Turkey emphasizes that the move has nothing to do with politics, and was a humanitarian gesture.
