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Material destruction appears to be greatest in Turkey’s third largest city, Izmir, where several apartment blocks collapsed.
Rescue teams searched for the survivors Friday night in the ruins of at least 17 buildings in Izmir, according to authorities. 70 people have been rescued alive from 14 collapsed buildings, Governor Yavuz Selim Kosger said.
Strong earthquake
Friday’s earthquake was measured at 6.6 by the Greek Seismological Institute, and its center was 16.5 kilometers below the Aegean Sea.
The center of the earthquake in Turkey measured the magnitude at 6.9 and a minor tsunami caused high water levels and flooding in several places along the coast of Turkey.
According to the Turkish crisis authority AFAD, 17 dead have been found in Izmir so far and 709 have been injured. One of the dead drowned.
A woman is comforted by the ruins of a collapsed building in Izmir. Photo: Ismail Gokmen / AP
Trapped in the ruins
Eyewitnesses also said smoke rose in various places in Izmir, which has just over 4 million residents.
Minor damage to buildings was also reported in six other Turkish provinces.
Replica
The earthquake in the Aegean Sea destroyed houses on the Greek island of Samos, as here in the port city of Vathi. Photo: Michael Svarnias / AP
Also in Samos, buildings collapsed and two teenagers were killed when they were hit by a wall. In addition, at least 19 people were injured.
– Words are too poor to describe how one feels about losing children, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis tweeted in a message of condolence.
Mitsotakis called Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday and offered Greek help in the rescue operation in Izmir.
EU President Charles Michel and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg did the same.
– The EU is ready to contribute support, tweeted Michel.
The United States is also ready to help, says the country’s national security adviser Robert O’Brien. He commends the two neighboring countries for putting aside their differences and helping each other.
Water in the streets
Samos residents were asked to stay away from large buildings due to the risk of several aftershocks.
The island was also hit by the tsunami. Samos’ largest port city, Vathi, was flooded and water flooded the streets.
The quake also struck Crete, the Greek capital Athens and Turkey’s largest city Istanbul, but no damage was reported. The earthquake was also registered in Bulgaria.
