A strong earthquake struck the Aegean Sea on Friday and both Turkey and Greece were deeply hit.
A 7,0 magnitude earthquake struck the Aegean Sea on Friday, both Turkey and Greece felt it and people were frightened running in the streets.
Strong earthquake hits Aegean regions
The Turkish city of Izmir has been highly impacted and Turkish media are showing multiple buildings being destroyed and people trying to reach rescuers.
From the recordings, smoke is seen across the whole city. Four people have reportedly been killed. Turkish emergency services are working hard to find the people who presumably are under the destroyed buildings.
Dr. Fahrettin Koca, Turkish Health Minister, announced the death toll on Twitter:
İzmir’deki depremde ne yazık ki 4 vatandaşımız hayatını kaybetti. Toplamda 120 vatandaşımız depremden etkilendi. 38 ambulansımız, 35 UMKE ekibimiz ve 2 ambulans helikopterimiz olay yerinde. Tüm desteğimizle İzmir halkının yanındayız. Başımız sağ olsun.
— Dr. Fahrettin Koca (@drfahrettinkoca) October 30, 2020
Dr. Koka’s Twitter post reads:
“Unfortunately, 4 citizens lost their lives in the earthquake in Izmir. In total, 120 citizens were affected by the earthquake. Our 38 ambulances, 35 UMKE team and 2 ambulance helicopters are at the scene. We stand by the people of Izmir with all our support. Sorry for your loss.”
Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soyly posted on Twitter: “So far, we have received information about six collapsed buildings”. The city’s mayor Tunc Soyer told CNN that 20 buildings were destroyed by the quake on Friday. Izmir is Turkey’s third-biggest city and has about 4,5 million residents. Local media said the quake was felt across regions of Aegean and Marmara, where Istanbul is. The epicentre was 11 miles off the coast of the Izmir province at a depth of 10 km. The quake was felt across eastern Greek islands and the capital, Athens, where rockfalls were reported and people were flooding into the streets in total terror. Local media said the quake was felt across regions of Aegean and Marmara, where Istanbul is. The earthquake was felt in Athens as well as in the eastern Greek islands. Local media reported a mini-tsunami in Samos where buildings were also damaged.
The quake
Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) registered an earthquake of 6,6 of magnitude while the US Geological Survey reported a 7,0. It hit at 11:50 GMT and had an epicentre of 17 kilometres off the coast of the Izmir province at a depth of 16 kilometres. The US Geological Survey reported a depth of 10 kilometres and an epicentre of 33,5 kilometres off Turkey’s coast.
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