Tuncay Dersinlioglu/Reuters
- A 6.6-magnitude earthquake struck the Aegean Sea near the Greek island of Samos on Friday.
- As of Friday evening local time, there were reports of 12 deaths, six in Turkey’s Izmir province, and two children on Samos.
- Over 400 people were injured in the large city of Izmir, where at least 20 buildings collapsed.
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A 6.6-magnitude earthquake struck the Aegean Sea early Friday afternoon, causing death and destruction along the Turkish coast.
According to Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency, the earthquake struck near the Greek island of Samos. It could be felt as far away as Athens, Istanbul, and Bulgaria, the Associated Press reported.
It caused major damage in Turkey’s western Izmir province, leaving twelve people dead and over 400 injured as of around 9 p.m. local time Friday, according to Andalou Agency.
Two children were also reported dead on Samos, according to Anadolu. Seventy people have been rescued from debris in Izmir so far, the provincial governor told the agency.
The mayor of Izmir, Tunc Soyer, told CNN Turk that the earthquake caused 20 buildings to collapse, according to the Associated Press. Izmir is Turkey’s third-largest city, with about 4.5 million residents.
—ANADOLU AGENCY (ENG) (@anadoluagency) October 30, 2020
Videos posted to social media showed buildings collapsing and residents pulling survivors out of the debris. Other videos show boats being dragged out to sea by a tidal wave, and tsunami flooding.
One of the six killed by the earthquake in Izmir died by drowning, according to Reuters.
—Sushmit Patil Сушмит Патил सुश्मित पाटिल (@PatilSushmit) October 30, 2020
There seemed to be less injuries and destruction on Samos, according to initial reports. A Greek official who spoke to Reuters said that eight people on Samos sustained light injuries.
However, it was strong enough to leave the island of 45,000 unsettled.
—Ragıp Soylu (@ragipsoylu) October 30, 2020
"We have never experienced anything like it," George Dionysiou, the local vice-mayor, told Reuters. "People are panicking."
A police spokesman said that the earthquake had caused some damage to old buildings on the island.
There was some initial confusion as to the exact strength of the earthquake. Turkish officials put it as a 6.6, the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre put it at 6.9, while the US Geological Survey recorded it as 7.0.
These kinds of differences are common in the immediate aftermath of an earthquake, according to the AP.
Turkey is a particularly earthquake-prone country, with several fault lines crossing it. More than 17,000 people were killed in a 7.6-magnitude earthquake that struck the southeastern town of Izmit in August 1999.
