Four dead and 120 injured after 7.0 earthquake strikes Turkey’s coast
At least four people have been killed and 120 injured after a powerful earthquake in the Aegean Sea shook Turkey and Greece.
Several buildings were wrecked in Turkey’s western Izmir province, according to officials, but there was no immediate information on casualties.
Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency said Friday’s earthquake was centred 10 miles under the Aegean and registered at 6.6 magnitude.
The country’s health minister Fahrettin Koca tweeted that four people had been killed in Izmir and 120 injured. He said 38 ambulances, two helicopters and 35 medical rescue teams were working in the city.
The emergency authority said it had sent search and rescue teams to Izmir.
The European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre said the quake had a preliminary magnitude of 6.9, with an epicentre eight miles off the Greek island of Samos.
The United States Geological Survey put the magnitude at 7.0.
Turkish media showed a multiple-storey building reduced to rubble in central Izmir, with people climbing it to start rescue efforts.
At least one woman was pictured being helped from the wreckage of another collapsed building, and smoke was filmed in several spots in central Izmir.
Mayor Tunc Soyer told CNN Turk that about 20 buildings have collapsed.
The city is the third biggest in Turkey with about 4.5 million residents.
The quake was felt across the regions of Aegean and Marmara, including Istanbul.
Istanbul’s governor said there were no reports of damage in the city.
There were also tremors across the eastern Greek islands as well as the capital Athens.
Greek media said the residents of Samos and other islands fled their homes, while some rockfalls were reported. There were no immediate reports of injuries.
Turkey and Greece reported aftershocks, and the quake was also felt in Bulgaria.
Greek seismologist Efthymios Lekkas told state television ERT that it was still too early to say whether this was the main earthquake, although he said it was likely, adding: ‘It is an event that is evolving.’.
A tsunami warning was issued, with residents of the Samos area told to stay away from the coast.
Water rose above the dock in the main harbour and flooded the street.
The regional governor of the Samos region, Yiannis Stamoulis, said no injuries had been reported on the island.
Residents were warned to stay away from buildings as aftershocks rattled the area.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.