Powerful Earthquake Hits Turkey and Greece, Claiming 14 Lives and Injuring Hundreds

• A strong earthquake struck Turkey and Greece on Friday afternoon.
• Turkey’s disaster agency measured its magnitude at 6.6, while the United States Geological Survey claimed it was a 7.0.
• Approximately 419 people were injured and 14 died due to the temblor.

A 6.6 magnitude earthquake hit along the Aegean coast, around 1:51pm on Friday, October 30, according to Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD).

Its epicentre was noted to be 14 km northeast of Neón and Karlovásion on Samos. The United States Geological Survey (USGS), however, measured the magnitude of the tremor at 7.0, and said that the temblor occurred 10 km deep about 33.5 km offshore.

Consequently, about 20 structures in Izmir collapsed, said Mayor Tunc Soyer.

People rushed to the streets in panic after the earthquake struck.

It also caused damagse across several towns in Turkey and rocked Greece’s capital, Athens.

About 419 people were injured and 14 died in Turkey and Greece due to the strong earthquake.

Twelve of them were killed in the coastal areas west of Turkey. One of the 12 victims drowned, said the Turkish emergencies agency. Meanwhile, two teens from the Greek Island of Samos died after a wall collapsed on them, CNN reported.

The quake lasted about 15 seconds and shockwaves were noted as far as Istanbul and Athens, according to reports from local media.

Footage from an eyewitness showed that the sea also retreated several meters from the seafront in Izmir.

Water likewise flooded the streets of Cesme and Seferihisarin, and also in the Greek island of Samos. Authorities called it a ‘mini-tsunami.’ Residents on Samos island were advised to avoid the coastal areas.

Eftyhmios Lekkas, head of Greece’s earthquake response organization said, “It was a very big earthquake, it’s difficult to have a bigger one.”

Despite the tension between the two countries, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis reached out to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

On Twitter he wrote:

“I just called President @RTErdogan to offer my condolences for the tragic loss of life from the earthquake that struck both our countries. Whatever our differences, these are times when our people need to stand together.”

France and the President of the European Parliament likewise reached out, saying ‘the EU stands ready to help.’