Disasters are events that go beyond natural events and have fundamentally social, cultural and political dimensions. It is seen that the impact and severity of disasters that have caused the death of many people, especially the earthquakes and floods that have occurred in Turkey recently, are caused by unplanned and unresistant urban construction. Therefore, whether a natural event causes a disaster or not often depends on the perspective of citizens in the society or state towards the phenomenon of disaster and whether they are conscious about it.

Since there are many direct or indirect relationships between disasters and local communities, local governments that are in close contact with local communities are one of the important tools in preventing and combating the negative effects of disasters. Local governments can ensure the participation and awareness of local people in reducing disaster risks and combating disasters, both before and after the disaster. Ancak yerel yönetimlerin afetlerle mücadelede karşılaştıkları pek çok zorluk bulunmaktadır. The most basic of these is the lack of personnel with sufficient knowledge and skills regarding disasters in local governments. Another is the usurpation by central governments of the responsibilities and powers that local governments should have regarding disasters.

As a result, the importance of local governments in disaster management is increasing day by day. At this point, coordination problems experienced in the face of disasters that cause the death of many people necessitate the reconsideration of the areas of responsibility of local governments.