For aviation talk visit http://freeaviation.freeforums.orgIn the early hours of Tuesday, August 17, 1999 a powerful earthquake measuring more than seven on the Richter scale struck the northwest coast of Turkey, near Izmit, in the most prosperous and highly developed area of the country.According to some estimates, more than 30,000 people died and more than 600,000 buildings were destroyed within 20 kilometres of the epicentre, while one third of the city of Gialova sank into the water.The earthquake had also destroyed the electric power network. Technicians tried hard to repair the power system, but this activity was halted by the refinery's general manager, who feared that short circuits might cause new fires.Most refinery workers lived in the immediate area and many were dead or injured and, as a result, there were few people with knowledge of the refinery's operation or its layout available to help fight the fire. Only 200 of the refinery's 3,000 employees came to the site during the remainder of the day.Thirty minutes after the earthquake, the distillation tower in the Turpas refinery (Turkey's largest refinery) collapsed, causing the outbreak of fire in four large petroleum storage tanks. Shortly after sending rescue teams (Greek firefighters and commandos) and humanitarian aid, Greece also sent aerial firefighting resources in response to Turkey's request.The aerial firefighting mission was under the operational command of the Greek Fire Corps. The equipment consisted of one S-64 helicopter with internal tanks having a capacity of nine tons of water; one Bombardier 415 amphibious firefighting aircraft; and, one C-130 CA transport aircraft, which delivered technical equipment, foam, engineers and the support crews. This equipment arrived in Turkey in the morning of August 18, and remained until August 21, with the exception of the helicopter. The Bombardier 415 aircraft was one of Greece's two 415s, operated by the Hellenic Air Force, while the helicopter was leased and employed in forest firefighting duties in Greece.Situation in TurkeyBy the afternoon of August 18, when the Greek mission arrived at the refinery, the situation in Izmit was very grave. While people were dealing with the destruction caused by the earthquake, the two most pressing problems were continuing rescue efforts to reach those trapped in the ruins, and the fire in the refinery. Thick smoke from the fire covered the entire area, further complicating matters.In the refinery, the earthquake had destroyed the water supply infrastructure. The refinery's mobile water pumps had been requested by the Crisis Management Committee and had been moved to the relief camps to support victims or to the disaster areas to support the rescue crews. In addition, seawater close to the refinery was unusable for firefighting as it was covered with oil.The earthquake had also destroyed the electric power network. Technicians tried hard to repair the power system, but this activity was halted by the refinery's general manager, who feared that short circuits might cause new fires.Most refinery workers lived in the immediate area and many were dead or injured and, as a result, there were few people with knowledge of the refinery's operation or its layout available to help fight the fire. Only 200 of the refinery's 3,000 employees came to the site during the remainder of the day.By the end of the day of the earthquake, five petroleum storage tanks were on fire, with flames shooting more than 200 feet in the air. The fire plume, with high temperature gases and extreme radiant heat, was approaching a cluster of spherical tanks that could not be cooled. A Turkish S-2 Tracker aircraft operating in the area, and dropping three tons of retardant at two-hour intervals from a height of 500 feet had made no progress containing the fire.In total, the Greek Bombardier 415 aircraft operated for 16 hours of direct firefighting, with eight sorties and 280 tons of foam dropped. The operation also established a number of 'firsts', including first foreign use of a Greek firefighting aircraft and first Greek military aircraft operating from a Turkish military airport. More importantly, the mission also marked the first operational use of firefighting aircraft against a refinery fire.The operation in Turkey was an unqualified success and could not have been achieved without the bravery and professionalism of the Air Force officers and non-commissioned officers aboard the aircraft. The Greek contribution was noted in major Turkish newspapers -- and by the general manager of the Turpas refinery, who said: "The Greek firemen were the first to arrive and the most effective of all."

Video providers : , and this video is stored with all copyright by