The terrible earthquake in Turkey became a real shock for the whole world and took the lives of thousands of people. Unfortunately, it is impossible to prevent a natural disaster, but knowing the basic safety rules is necessary for each of us. We tell you what to do during an earthquake and whether a cataclysm threatens Ukraine

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A terrible earthquake in Turkey and Syria killed thousands of people and caused enormous destruction. The whole world is now faced with the question of how to protect oneself and be prepared for a natural disaster. We tell you how to act during earthquakes, basic rules, advice, and whether a cataclysm directly threatens Ukraine.

As you know, an earthquake is shocks and vibrations of the earth's surface that are transmitted over long distances. According to statistics, about 58,000 earthquakes occur on average around the world every year.

Unfortunately, scientists today cannot accurately determine where and when the next earthquake will occur, so you should be as prepared as possible for it and not panic.

How to act during an earthquake?

The State Service for Emergency Situations informed what to do in the event of a cataclysm.

Firstly, if you are on 1-2 floors, you need to quickly leave the house and move away from it to an open place.

If you are above the 2nd floor, you must:

- leave corner rooms and stand in the opening of the interior door or in the corner of the room, as far as possible from windows and heavy objects;

- hide under sturdy tables, near the main walls or columns, cover your head with your hands;

- leave the house when the first series of shocks ends;

- if possible, turn off water taps, turn off gas and electricity.

If there is a connection and a phone nearby, call 101 and report your whereabouts.

If there is no phone nearby, call for help so that people on the street hear that there are people in the room.

Attention! When evacuating the house, do not rush to the stairs or the elevator. You cannot create a large crowd. The house should be left quickly, but carefully.

You should also watch out for debris, electrical wires and other sources of danger and stay away from tall buildings, overpasses, bridges and power lines.

Do not drive during an earthquake. For safety, it is better to move on foot.

If you are in the car at the time of the tremors, you must:

- stop, open the door;

- stay in the car until the vibrations stop;

- check if there are any victims nearby, notify rescuers and medics;

- if necessary, provide first aid.

Also, if you decide to evacuate your home knowing an earthquake has struck nearby, do the following:

- shut off gas, water and electricity.

- take documents, a small supply of food, water, and medicines with you.

- when leaving, do not use the elevator, goes on foot. Move quickly but carefully: with your back to walls, especially when going downstairs.

- help elderly neighbors, people with disabilities, pregnant women and everyone who is unable to take care of themselves.

- find out through the official government channels where the nearest collection center is.

Is an earthquake threatening Ukraine?

According to experts, destructive earthquakes, such as the one in Turkey, do not threaten Ukraine, but seismic danger still exists.

"The danger for Ukraine is not as great as, for example, for Turkey or other countries that are covered by the powerful seismic belt of our planet. It was formed as a result of the fact that Eurasia seems to descend from top to bottom, and the African and Indian continental plates move towards it. It is obvious that when they met many millions of years ago, enormous tensions arose that continue to accumulate even now", - Oleksandr Kendzera, director of the Institute of Geophysics of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, told TSN.ua.

He emphasized that the territory of Ukraine is located near a powerful seismically active belt that stretches across the Mediterranean Sea, the Caucasus, and the Idokush, and then splits into two separate belts. Thus, in Ukraine there is less chance that strong earthquakes can happen often, but such countries as Georgia, Armenia, Cyprus, Turkey, Syria are territorially located precisely in the belt where earthquakes can occur more often.

The State Emergency Service also assured that the risks of an earthquake in Ukraine are insignificant.

"First of all, the message about the probability of an earthquake in Ukraine is spread with the aim of sowing panic among the population. Of course, there are risks, but they are not as significant as on the territory of Turkey. And now we cannot say that Ukraine is threatened by the same kind of large-scale earthquakes. There are relevant experts who can confirm this", - said Volodymyr Demchuk, director of the Emergency Response Department of the State Emergency Service.

It is also worth noting that one of the reasons for the terrible destruction of residential buildings in Turkey is the failure to ensure earthquake resistance of buildings.

Unfortunately, most of the houses that simply crumbled before the eyes of local residents were not prepared and strengthened. New houses in countries belonging to the seismically active zone must be built according to the appropriate standards in case of such cataclysms.

Photo: EPA/UPG. Consequences of the earthquake in Turkey

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