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ISTANBUL: A strong 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck the Aegean Sea on Friday (October 30), collapsing buildings in the western Turkish city of Izmir, killing at least six people and injuring scores more according to authorities.
The earthquake occurred around 11.50am GMT (7.50pm Singapore time) and was felt along Turkey’s Aegean coast and the northwestern Marmara region including Istanbul, media said.
Istanbul Governor Ali Yerlikaya said there were no reports of damage in the city, Turkey’s largest.
The epicenter was about 17km off the coast of Izmir province, at a depth of 16km, AFAD said.
The USGS said the depth was 10 km and the epicenter was 33.5 km off the coast of Turkey.
The quake was also felt in Greece, where injuries and damage have been reported on the island of Samos.
The six killed in Izmir, Turkey’s third-largest city, include one person who drowned, while 202 were injured, according to Turkey’s Presidency of Emergency and Disaster Management, or AFAD.
AFAD put the earthquake’s magnitude at 6.6, while the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said it was 7.0.
People work in a collapsed house in an area affected by the earthquake in Izmir, Turkey, on October 30, 2020. A large 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck the west coast of the country. The United States Geological Survey said the quake struck 14 kilometers from the Greek city of Neon Karlovasion, on the island of Samos in the Aegean Sea. (Photo: AFP / Demiroren News Agency Brochure)
Izmir Governor Yavuz Selim Kosger said at least 70 people were rescued from the rubble.
He said four buildings were destroyed and more than 10 collapsed, while others were also damaged.
Search and rescue efforts continue in at least 12 buildings, AFAD said.
Turkish media showed the remains of a multi-story building, and people climbed up to begin rescue efforts. Smoke rose from several points.
Videos on Twitter showed flooding in the city’s Seferhisar district, and Turkish officials and announcers called on people to stay off the streets after reports of traffic congestion.
A small tsunami struck the Seferisar district, according to Haluk Ozener, director of the Istanbul Kandilli Observatory and Earthquake Research Institute.
People stand in front of their homes in Izmir, Turkey, on Friday, October 30, 2020, after a strong earthquake in the Aegean Sea shook Turkey and Greece. (Photo: AP / Ismail Gokmen)
At least four people were slightly injured in Samos, where a tsunami warning was issued, with some damage to buildings and the road network also reported there.
Turkish Health Minister Fahrettin Koca tweeted that 38 ambulances, two ambulance helicopters and 35 medical rescue teams are working in Izmir.
People flooded the streets of the resort city of Izmir, witnesses said, after the earthquake struck the region.
Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu previously said there were no reports of casualties from six other provinces where the earthquake was felt, but said there were small cracks in some buildings.
Locals and officials search for survivors in a collapsed building after a strong earthquake struck the Aegean Sea on Friday, October 30, 2020, and was felt in both Greece and Turkey. (Photo: Reuters / Tuncay Dersinlioglu)
People stand in front of their homes in Izmir, Turkey, on Friday, October 30, 2020, after a strong earthquake in the Aegean Sea shook Turkey and Greece. (Photo: AP / Ismail Gokmen)
Residents of Samos, which has a population of around 45,000, were urged to stay away from coastal areas, Efthymios Lekkas, head of the Greek organization for anti-seismic planning, told Greece’s Skai TV.
“It was a very big earthquake, it is difficult to have a bigger one,” Lekkas said.
Greek seismologist Akis Tselentis told Greek state broadcaster ERT that the earthquake was believed to be the main one, but potentially powerful aftershocks could be expected for several weeks, or even a month, due to the shallow depth of its epicenter.
He said residents of the affected areas should be careful not to enter buildings that could have been damaged by the initial earthquake, as they could collapse in a strong aftershock.
The earthquake was felt in the islands of eastern Greece and as far away as the Greek capital, Athens, and Bulgaria.
