Istanbul: One fatality and at least 8 injuries after five-storey building collapse

On Sunday 2^nd of June, a 36-year-old building collapsed in Istanbul, Turkey at 8:40 a.m. (0540 GMT).  The collapse resulted in one death while at least 8 people were injured. Emergency workers immediately arrived at the site to rescue individuals trapped beneath a collapsed apartment building.

Until now, the cause of the collapse hasn't been determined, but explosion or seismic activity were excluded. It should be mentioned that the first 3 floors were used by local businesses and only the top two were residences. Additionally, the incident has once again raised concerns about the structural integrity of buildings in an earthquake-prone city.

Local news reported that firefighters manually cleared the rubbles of the five-story building in Kucukcekmece. Later, they added, that 8 people were rescued from the debris, while two of them had severe injuries. Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya reported that police had detained the building owner and the owner of a restaurant.

We must not forget that last year’s earthquake had at least 59,000 fatalities when a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck parts of southern Turkey and neighboring Syria, highlighting the poor enforcement of building regulations in Turkey.