Turkey’s largest animal hospital moves to prefabricated offices

ISTANBUL-Demirören News Agency

Turkey’s largest animal hospital has moved to prefabricated modular buildings due to damage to the hospital caused by the 5.8-magnitude earthquake in September.

The Istanbul University Cerrahpaşa Faculty of Veterinary Science Hospital has treated thousands of sick animals each year, since it first opened in 1987. Beginning on Oct. 23, the hospital is operating out of temporary quarters in 16 prefabricated modular buildings on the university’s campus in the Avcılar district.

The modular buildings, provided by the Turkish Red Crescent (“Kızılay” in Turkish), have been set up on the campus’ tennis courts, said Prof. Dr. Güven Kaşıkçı, dean of the veterinary faculty, who observed the buildings’ assembly.

Kaşıkçı told Demirören News Agency on Oct. 22 that the hospital’s move is only temporary.

“The main laboratory, pharmacy, radiology unit, MR unit and tomography unit are still in the hospital building, which is not being used. We are working on how we can use them. We are thinking of also creating a space here for them and moving them,” he said.

Problems regarding infrastructure might persist for a while, as it is “hard to give service in containers,” Kaşıkçı said. “But we will overcome them [problems]. But, we are willing to do so. We have to do so, and we will,” he said.

Many buildings in the university’s Avcılar campus were damaged during the Sept. 26 earthquake, one of which was the veterinary faculty. The veterinary faculty students have started to attend classes on the campus in the Büyükçekmece district, whereas the animal hospital stayed at the Avcılar campus.

The Avcılar campus was also damaged during the deadly Marmara earthquake in 1999. The district is built on relatively weak ground mainly composed of poorly consolidated sedimentary rocks, which makes this area vulnerable to earthquakes.