Drowning incidents in Samandağ before and after the 6 February 2023 Kahramanmaraş earthquake

This study aimed to evaluate public health risks emerging in the postdisaster period by examining changes in water-related drowning incidents in the Samandağ district before and after the earthquake centred in Kahramanmaraş on 6 February 2023.

Drowning cases were retrospectively collected from the medical records of Hatay Samandağ State Hospital during the pre-earthquake (6 April 2021 to 5 February 2023) and postearthquake (6 February 2023 to 6 December 2024) periods. Demographic characteristics, causes of drowning, safety measures and environmental conditions were compared. Statistical analyses were conducted using the Python programming language. The Mann-Whitney U test and Fisher's Exact test were applied.

The number of drowning cases increased from 25 in the pre-earthquake period to 31 in the postearthquake period. The median age rose from 16 to 20 years. Accidental falls into water increased after the earthquake (from 0% to 13.3%). In both periods, only a small number of individuals had received water safety training or used protective equipment. Furthermore, there was a consistent lack of preventive measures, such as area safety, supervision or hazard warning systems, before and after the disaster. However, no statistically significant differences were found between the two periods in terms of case numbers, age, gender or nationality (p=0.3, p=0.44, p=0.11 and p=0.77, respectively).

The findings indicate an increased risk of drowning in the postearthquake period. Based on the data obtained, it is essential to strengthen water safety infrastructure, raise public awareness and enhance emergency response capacities in disaster-affected areas to improve public health outcomes.