A strong earthquake of magnitude of up to 7.0 struck the Aegean Sea on Friday and was felt in both Turkey and Greece, local and international observatories said.
People flooded to the streets in the Turkish coastal city of Izmir after the earthquake, witnesses said.
Turkish media showed wreckage of a multiple-story building in central Izmir, with people climbing it to reach rescuers. Smoke was seen in several spots in the city.
No casualties were immediately reported.
“So far, we have received information about six collapsed buildings” in Izmir province, which includes the city, Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu said on Twitter.
Environment Minister Murat Kurum said he knew of five collapsed buildings. “Some of our fellow citizens are stuck in the rubble,” he said.
The quake triggered a small-scale tsunami in Seferihisar, Huseyin Alan, head of Turkey’s Chamber of Geological Engineers, told state news agency TRT, warning people to stay away from buildings.
Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) put the magnitude of the earthquake at 6.6, while the US Geological Survey said it was 7.0. It struck at around 11:50 GMT and was felt along Turkey’s Aegean coast and the northwestern Marmara region, local media said.
The epicentre was some 17km (11 miles) off the coast of the Izmir province, at a depth of 16 km, AFAD said. The US Geological Survey said the depth was 10km and the epicentre was 33.5 km off Turkey’s coast.
