The Effects of the Cascading Disasters in Southeastern Türkiye: Site Assessment of March 2023 Flood Following February 2023 Earthquakes
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CIVIL ENGINEERING, cilt.24, sa.2, ss.307-337, 2026 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
- Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
- Cilt numarası: 24 Sayı: 2
- Basım Tarihi: 2026
- Doi Numarası: 10.1007/s40999-025-01183-0
- Dergi Adı: INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CIVIL ENGINEERING
- Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, Compendex
- Sayfa Sayıları: ss.307-337
- İstanbul Üniversitesi Adresli: Hayır
Özet
A devastating flood event was observed in & Scedil;anl & imath;urfa and Ad & imath;yaman, located in the arid region of T & uuml;rkiye, on March 15, 2023. The fact that the occurrence of the flood event follows the two gigantic earthquakes observed in the same region on February 6, 2023, makes the situation compound. This paper evaluates the observations of the site visit of the region and sheds light on the effect of consecutive but distinct natural disasters on the observed damage. The overflow of flood peaks caused damage to bridges and highways located in floodplains in rural parts of the region, whereas the infrastructure designed with no focus on hydraulic aspects becomes pronounced in the city center of & Scedil;anl & imath;urfa, particularly the underpass filled with debris flow. Findings show that the diversion of the original stream bed at the city center of & Scedil;anl & imath;urfa, which was done hundreds of years ago by Eastern Roman Emperor Justinian, has a significant effect on flooding. The effects of flooding in a mountainous river in the Tut district of Ad & imath;yaman province stand out due to the potential amplifying effect of the earthquake that happened 37 days before the flooding. In this context, the hazard occurring in Ad & imath;yaman Tut district was evaluated to be a perfect example for the cascading effects of two distinct natural disasters, i.e., earthquake and flood. Observations show that the structures next to the floodplain should have a base elevation of at least 1.5 m above the crest level of the stream bed. Moreover, the critical infrastructures such as bridges and the main stormwater drainage system should be renewed and re-constructed with respect to the 500-year flood flow. Last but not least, the cultural heritage in & Scedil;anl & imath;urfa province is also partially affected, which emphasizes the importance of the protection of these vulnerable regions against flood risk.