See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/226113643 Tsunamis Observed on and Near the Turkish Coast Article in Natural Hazards · January 2000 DOI: 10.1023/A:1008155117243 CITATIONS READS 91 453 2 authors: Yıldız Altınok Şükrü Ersoy Istanbul University Yildiz Technical University 64 PUBLICATIONS 834 CITATIONS 64 PUBLICATIONS 544 CITATIONS SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects: TRANSFER View project Acil saha gözlem View project All content following this page was uploaded by Şükrü Ersoy on 08 November 2014. The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file. Natural Hazards 21: 185–205, 2000. 185 © 2000 Kluwer Academic Publishers. Printed in the Netherlands. Tsunamis Observed on and Near the Turkish Coast Y. ALTINOK1 andS. ¸ ERSOY2 1Department of Geophysical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Istanbul, 34850 Avcilar, Istanbul, Turkey; 2Department of Geological Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Istanbul, 34850 Avcilar, Istanbul, Turkey (Received: 21 July 1998; in final form: 6 December 1999) Abstract. For centuries, inhabitants of coastal areas have suffered from the effects of tsunamis. Turkey, with a coastline of 8333 km, has experienced many tsunamis. Historical records reveal that, during the observation period over 3000 years, the coastal and surrounding areas of Turkey have been affected by more than ninety tsunamis. These tended to cluster around the Marmara Sea, the city of Istanbul and the gulfs of Izmit, Izmir, Fethiye and Iskenderun. Each of the tsunami occurrences surveyed in this paper deserves further individual study. The most extensive available information concerns the tsunamis associated with the Istanbul Earthquakes of 1509 and 1894, the Eastern Mar- mara Earthquake in 1963 and that of Izmit in 1999, which disturbed the Marmara Sea; the Earthquake of 1939 in Erzincan in eastern Anatolia; and the 1968 Bartın Earthquake, which affected Fatsa and Amasra on the Black Sea. In addition to these, it is known that a tsunami occurred in 1598 on the shores of the Black Sea in connection with an earthquake at Amasya in northern Anatolia. Key words: tsunamis, Turkish coasts. 1. Introduction Throughout human history, coastal communities have been aware of tsunami haz- ards. This natural catastrophe has been responsible for great loss of life and immense damage to property. When we look at the geographical distribution of tsunamis, the majority of them have been generated in the Pacific Ocean. Ac- cording to Gusiakov et al. (1997), more than 800 tsunamigenic events occurred all over the Pacific from A.D. 684 to 1994. The last major Pacific-wide tsunami occurred on 17 July 1998 in Sissano Lagoon, Papua New Guinea, and around 3000 people were killed or missing. Imamura (1998) stated that a survey of the damaged area confirmed 7 to 10 m wave heights and found a place where waves up to 15 m or above were centered. He also observed that the severe damage and extreme wave heights were confined to a relatively short (30 km) stretch of coast. Destructive tsunamis have also occurred in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans as well as in the Mediterranean Sea. In the eastern Mediterranean, historical records can be traced back to the 15th century B.C. The volcanic eruption of Santorini produced a tremendous tsunami and, as a result, the Minoan Civilization was wiped out. Many more destructive tsunamis have occurred in the eastern Mediterranean since then (Heck, 1947; Ambraseys, 1962; Karnik, 1971; Moreria, 1971; Shebalin et al., 186 Y. ALTINOK ANDS. ¸ ERSOY 1974; Antonopoulos, 1978; Guidoboni et al., 1994). The eastern Mediterranean tsunamis mostly took place in the Aegean Sea and surrounding areas (Calvi, 1941; Ambraseys, 1960, 1962; Antonopoulos, 1978; Poirier and Taher, 1980; Papado- poulos and Chalkis, 1984; Papazachos et al., 1985; Papadopoulos, 1993). It has been observed that most of these occurred along the Turkish coasts. Therefore Turkey, a country of frequent earthquakes and with a coastline of 8333 km, is also exposed to tsunamis. From historical documents, it has been found that earthquake- produced tsunamis had indeed occurred and that these had caused great material losses in Turkey and vicinity (Birand, 1944; Soysal et al., 1981; Soysal, 1985; Kuran and Yalçıner, 1993; Altınok and Ersoy, 1996–1997; Altınok and Ersoy, 1997). 2. Data Tsunamis that occurred on or near the Turkish coasts and those believed to have affected the Turkish coasts are listed in the Appendix. This list, which includes tsunamis that occurred between 1410 100 B.C. and 1999 A.D., is based on published work. The Iida (1984) Scale modified by Soloviev (1990) and, Tinti and Maramai (1996) has been used for the assessment of the reality of the events as follows: (0), very improbable tsunami; (1), improbable tsunami; (2), questionable tsunami; (3), probable tsunami; (4), definite tsunami. The following criteria have been considered in applying the scale to the listed tsunamis: (0) Occurrence improbable. The event has been documented, but is impossible to confirm and there is no general agreement. (1) Doubtful credibility. Insufficient data or evidence for confirmation are avail- able. (2) Probable tsunamis noted in various sources and catalogues, but with discrep- ancies, or confirmed in a single source of doubtful reliability. (3) Sources specific and reliable, but occurrence dates old. Discrepancies present in some sources and catalogues. Reliable report, but confirmed in only a limited number of sources. (4) The most reliable tsunamis which took place more recently. Multiple reli- able sources: historic documents, church manuscripts, manuscripts by various authors, state archives, biographies, essays, private letters, magazines and reports. 3. Tsunamis Observed on the Turkish Coasts and Adjacent Areas The spatial distribution of the listed tsunamis is shown in Figure 1. Most of the tsunamis occur in the Marmara Sea, particularly near Istanbul and the Gulf of Izmit, but also in the Gulf of Izmir and environs of the Gulf of Fethiye and in part the Gulf of Iskenderun. The chronological distribution of the tsunamis is presented in Figure 2, which shows a notable increase in the frequency of tsunamis in the TSUNAMIS OBSERVED ON AND NEAR THE TURKISH COAST 187 6th century. These were particularly prominent on the coast of Marmara Sea. It may be that this apparent clustering is the result of meticulous record keeping rather than a real effect, since the 6th century was the time of the greatest glory of the Byzantine era, when scholarship was at its peak. During the second part of the 19th century a considerable number of tsunamis took place. The majority of these were concentrated on the Aegean coasts. The cluster of events in the 19th century appears to be real, rather than the result of more detailed recording. Both the spatial and temporal distributions demonstrate the importance of the Marmara Sea with regard to tsunamis. Historical documents reveal that tsunamis clustered particularly around Istanbul and the Gulf of Izmit. The most detailed information presently available on tsunamis concerns those associated with the earthquakes of 10 September 1509, 10 July 1894, 18 September 1963 and 17 August 1999. The historical documents show that the most important tsunamis observed along the Black Sea were the Amasya Earthquake Tsunami in 1598 and the Erzincan Earthquake (Fatsa Tsunami) in 1939 and the Bartın Earthquake (Amasra Tsunami) in 1968. 3.1. THE ISTANBUL EARTHQUAKE,10SEPTEMBER 1509 This was one of the largest and most destructive earthquakes of the last five centur- ies in the eastern Mediterranean. It occurred in the Marmara Sea and was felt over a very large area, causing damage from Bolu to Edirne, and possibily as far as Mt. Athos. Maximum damage occurred in Istanbul. The earthquake killed 4000–5000 people in the city and destroyed over 1000 houses. The number of injured in the earthquake was put at 10000. The walls of Galata were damaged and the massive Galata Tower was shattered. Along the coast, the sea flooded the shores and waves crashed against the walls in the narrows between Pera and Istanbul (Ambraseys and Finkel, 1995). Waves overtopped the walls in Yenikapı and Aksaray was flooded. The walls of Izmit Castle on the shore were damaged beyond repair, the quay walls of the shipyard collapsed and waves flooded the dockyard and the lower districts of the city. An isoseismal map of this earthquake is shown in Figure 3. The tsunami waves of the earthquake overtopped the sea walls in Yenikapı, the wave height was most probably more than 6.0 m and the magnitude of the earthquake was close to 8.0 (Öztin and Bayülke, 1991). 3.2. THE ISTANBUL EARTHQUAKE,10JULY 1894 The earthquake occurring at 12.24 a.m. on 10 July 1894, damaged Istanbul and the surrounding area, and was felt at Ioanina, Bucharest, Crete, Greece, Konya and most of Anatolia. The earthquake killed 474 people and injured 482 more and des- troyed 1773 houses (Öztin, 1994). The isoseismal map of this earthquake according to Eginitis (1894) is shown in Figure 4. The author mentioned that, along the coast, many disturbances were seen in many parts; the sea receded up to 50 m and then 188 Y. ALTINOK AND ¸ S. ERSOY Figure 1. Locations of tsunamis which have occurred in Turkey and adjacent areas between 1410 100 B.C. and 1999 A.D. Numbers indicate the chronological order in the Appendix. TSUNAMIS OBSERVED ON AND NEAR THE TURKISH COAST Figure 2. Chronological list of tsunamis in Turkey and adjacent areas between 1410 100 B.C. and 1999 A.D. 189 190 Y. ALTINOK ANDS. ¸ ERSOY Figure 3. Isoseismal map of Istanbul earthquake, 10 September, 1509 (Öztin and Bayülke, 1991). Intensity evaluations are according to the MSK Scale. returned.