Turkey earthquake death toll suggests lessons of 1999 were not learned

Violations were not sufficiently penalised to deter construction companies and investors from cutting corners, but experts say the problem was largely ignored because addressing it would be expensive and unpopular.

The justice ministry has promised to punish anyone found responsible, announcing the establishment of earthquake criminal investigation units, and prosecutors have begun gathering samples of buildings for evidence on materials used in construction. Many more arrests are expected, but blaming building contractors is unlikely to assuage a rising tide of public anger at government policy.