Building safety and earthquakes

In this Prishtina Talks presentation, the civil engineer Burim Smajli takes up in depth the safety of buildings in Kosovo against seismic risk — a subject that became urgent again after the devastating earthquake in Turkey and Syria in 2023.

Smajli begins with a historical overview of the deadliest earthquakes in the world — from the earthquake in Russia (1902) to Alaska, Chile, Peru, Indonesia, Pakistan, China and Haiti — and explains the fundamental paradox: an earthquake of high magnitude is not necessarily more destructive than one of lower magnitude. The quality of the buildings, the hour at which it strikes, how long it lasts and the density of the population are what decide the loss of life.

In the central part, Smajli moves the analysis to Kosovo: how the country was built before and after the war, what is wrong with the quality of the buildings standing today, the role of the 2013 Law on the Regulation of Construction, and why the Building Code — which rests on the provisional European code — is not always applied as it should be. He identifies the ties between investors and engineers, the practice of stamping papers with no real check behind them, and why citizens so often buy a flat without knowing whether the building is safe in an earthquake. The lecture closes with an analysis of the average seismic risk for Kosovo and practical recommendations for citizens, investors and institutions.

Some of the points covered: 📌 The 2023 Turkey earthquake as a wake-up call on building safety 📌 The five or six deadliest earthquakes in modern history 📌 The paradox: a high magnitude does not necessarily mean destruction 📌 The factors that decide: quality, hour, duration, density 📌 The seismic history of Kosovo, and the risk today 📌 The Law on the Regulation of Construction (2013), and the Building Code 📌 The role of the Chamber of Architects and Engineers 📌 The problem today: a formal check against a real one 📌 Recommendations for citizens buying a flat

📍 Prishtina Talks