Liquefaction-induced damage assessment in Golbasi city after the 6th February 2023 Türkiye earthquakes

On February 6th, 2023, at 4:17 a.m. local time, a devastating earthquake struck the territories of southeastern Türkiye and northwestern Syria. The moment magnitude recorded for the first strong quake was 7.7. Subsequently, numerous quakes of moment magnitude greater than 3 were recorded in the already affected areas. A further strong quake of magnitude 7.6 at 13:24 local time resulted in further extensive damage in the eleven provinces of Türkiye already hit. This paper focuses on the assessment of the earthquake-induced damage to the built environment observed in Gölbaşı city, located in the Adıyaman province of Türkiye close to the Gölbaşı Lake. The damage data have been collected through an in-situ reconnaissance performed by the Turkish author 10 days after the main seismic events. Analysis of the strong ground motions recorded in Gölbaşı city has been cross-checked with data on geological and subsoil conditions, also integrated with data reported in other studies, and the observed damage mechanisms. The features of the detected damage highlighted the presence of both inertia-induced effects, due mainly to the building vulnerability, and typical damage patterns related to the earthquake-induced liquefaction of the foundation soils, such as punching failure and consolidation settlements. This preliminary assessment shows the significance of this case for the advancement of the knowledge on earthquake-induced liquefaction and traces the route for deeper future studies.