Panic as quake hits Greece and Turkey
– A powerful earthquake killed at least two people and injured scores when it struck near major Turkish and Greek tourist destinations in the Aegean Sea early yesterday, officials said.
Local officials said 100 people were injured on the Greek holiday island of Kos, a destination favoured by British holidaymakers. The identity of the victims was not immediately known.
Turkey’s disaster and emergency management authority, AFAD, said the earthquake had a magnitude of 6.3, with its epicentre 11 km from the nearest settlement, the village of Camlik.
Other reports put the quake magnitude at 6.7.
Across a narrow Aegean Sea waterway in Turkey’s Bodrum, about 70 people were admitted to hospital, with injuries suffered in their attempts to flee the overnight tremor, which struck at 1.31 a.m.
It was the second quake of magnitude exceeding 6.0 in the broader region this year, a level that can cause considerable damage.
A hospital official said 100 people were injured, most slightly. Greek authorities sent helicopters to airlift the injured, said Yiorgos Hadjimarkou, the head of the South Aegean region.
“Our primary concern right now is safeguarding human life,” he told Greek state broadcaster ERT.
The Greek coast guard said damage was reported to the port of Kos, which is near a tourist strip of cafes and bars. – Reuters