14 dead, buildings collapse as major quake hits Turkey, Greece
Rescuers dig through huge concrete blocks with bare hands in desperate search for survivors
At least 14 people were killed after a 6.6-magnitude earthquake struck the eastern Aegean on Friday, setting off mini-tsunamis that hit coastal areas and nearby islands.
The powerful earthquake leveled buildings across Greece and Turkey and rescuers dug through heavy blocks of concrete with their bare hands in a desperate search for survivors.
According to the Turkish Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency 12 people died, and more than 400 were injured, and two teenagers were reported dead on the Greek island of Samos. People were trapped in the rubble as buildings collapsed in Izmir, the country’s third biggest city with about 4.5 million residents, and there was fear that the death toll would rise.
Izmir Mayor, Tunc Soyer, said around 20 buildings came down in the province. Izmir’s governor said 70 people had been rescued from under the rubble.
The epicenter of the earthquake was in the Aegean Sea 17 km off the coast of Izmir province, at a depth of 16 km. The tremor was felt as far away as in Istanbul.
Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry expressed its deepest pain for those who perished and were injured in Izmir, praying to God for mercy on the deceased and a speedy recovery for the injured.
Ayse Basarir, a resident of Izmir’s Bostanli neighborhood, told Arab News: “Our building shook for around 10 seconds. We ran out of it quickly, but I don’t think people will have the courage to go back to their houses today. We will rather wait in the parks to see things calming down despite the cold weather and the pandemic threat.”
It is the first time Izmir has witnessed such a massive quake in more than 330 years. The last big
quake that hit the city was reported in 1688. The city lies on 17 active fault lines with the potential to trigger earthquakes with magnitudes ranging between 6 and 7.2.
Turkey is among the most earthquake-prone countries in the world. More than 17,000 people were killed in August 1999 when a 7.6 magnitude quake struck Izmit, a city southeast of Istanbul. In 2011, a quake in the eastern city of Van killed more than 500.
Despite suffering devastating earthquakes in the past, the country does not have a good record in erecting disaster-proof buildings.
About half of the buildings in Izmir are reported to be built illegally. Duygu Erdem, a resident of Seferihisar, a coastal resort town near Izmir, said she and her little son were terrified by the magnitude of the quake. “I heard some fishermen went missing. We saw scary images with floods in the street. May Allah help all people under the collapsed buildings. We all witnessed what a weak infrastructure in the cities could lead to,” she told Arab News. Ismail Yetiskin, mayor of Seferihisar, said the town seemed to be struck by a small tsunami.
Footage on social media showed
debris including refrigerators, chairs and tables floating through streets. Cars in Seferihisar had been dragged by the water and piled on top of each other.
Idil Gungor, who runs a hotel in Seferihisar, said people were cleaning the debris after the floodwaters receded. She said fish had washed up on the garden of the hotel, around 50 metres from the shore. France and Greece, two countries whose relations with Ankara have worsened recently, offered help for the emergency operations.