Earthquake hits Turkish Izmir, causing injuries and minor damage

An earthquake of moderate intensity hit the western Turkish province of Izmir at dawn on Friday, causing panic among residents and bringing down the minaret of a mosque, officials said. Several people were injured while trying to escape from their homes in a panic.

The Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) said the 4.9-magnitude quake had its epicenter in Izmir’s Buka district and struck at 3:29 a.m. The quake was followed by several aftershocks and was felt by people in the surrounding areas. Izmir Mayor Tung Soyer said there were no reports of serious damage other than the collapsed minaret. “Apart from the panic, fear and alarm it has caused to our residents, we have not received any negative reports,” Sawyer told Haber Turk TV.

Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu flew to Izmir to inspect search and rescue work and damage after the earthquake. Soylu told reporters that 31 people had called for help in hospital due to panic, and three were undergoing treatment while another was in intensive care. Earlier, Soylu tweeted that some people were injured when they jumped from their windows at the time of the earthquake. He said that about 20 buildings suffered cracks after the quake and received calls regarding damages to some buildings, noting that crews from the Ministry of Environment, Urban Planning and Climate Change are working on examining the exact damages from the earthquakes.

“The stock of buildings in Izmir needs immediate change,” Soylu emphasized, noting that old buildings are more susceptible to earthquake damage. “Otherwise, we may have a more difficult experience in the case of a (stronger earthquake). An earthquake of greater strength may have worrisome consequences,” he said. Professor Orhan Tatar, Head of the Seismic and Hazard Mitigation Directorate who accompanied Soylu, said there may be more aftershocks, with a magnitude of 4.0, and urged the public to be vigilant. And the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority announced earlier that 13 aftershocks were recorded in the region, the highest strength of 2.4. Tatar told reporters that Izmir is surrounded by about 18 active fault lines and that the recent tremors were at the northeastern end of the fault line that goes from Gazimir region to Doganbe Bay. “The public should not panic, but we should always be vigilant of a possible earthquake,” he said.

Speaking to the Demiroren News Agency (DHA), Professor Hasan Sozbilir, who heads an earthquake research center at Dokuz Eylul University in Izmir, said that the fault line under Buka is active but cannot cause an earthquake with a magnitude greater than 6.0.

The earthquake occurred days after memorials for the victims of the 6.6-magnitude earthquake that killed 117 people on October 30, 2020. Turkey sits on top of major fault lines and is frequently shaken by earthquakes. About 18,000 people were killed in strong earthquakes that struck northwest Turkey in 1999.

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