Rescue workers continue searching for survivors after strong earthquake in İzmir

Duvar English

At least 58 people were killed and 896 others were injured in a 6.6 magnitude earthquake that shook Turkey's Aegean province of İzmir on Oct. 30.

Turkey's Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) said that one of those killed was Fatma Erçetin, an 86-year-old woman who had difficulty in walking, who drowned after sea level in the province rose following the quake.

AFAD also said that hundreds of aftershocks hit the area and some 100 people were rescued from under the rubble so far.

Television images and videos showed delicate work to rescue people from under the rubble.

Rescue workers also managed to save a cat from under the rubble.

Search and rescue operations were complete in eight buildings, while operations continued in nine locations, officials said.

Ministers and dozens of high-level officials are currently in İzmir.

People crowded onto the streets in İzmir after the quake struck the province. The tremor could be felt as far away as Istanbul.

AFAD said that the epicenter of the quake was at a depth of 16.5 km in the Aegean Sea, 17 km off the coast of Seferihisar district.

The Kandilli Observatory and Earthquake Research Institute reported the magnitude of the earthquake as 6.8, while the United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported the magnitude as 7.0. The USGS said the depth was 10 km and that the epicenter was 33.5 km off Turkey's coast.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan called İzmir Mayor Tunç Soyer to tell him that "the state stands with İzmir with all of its capability."

İzmir Governor Yavuz Selim Köşger said 70 people had been rescued from under the rubble. Soyer said that the destruction in the Bayraklı district was major.

"Unfortunately there are casualties and injuries," he said, urging Bayraklı residents to spend the night in the tents that will be provided by the municipality.

İzmir Governor's Office said that entrances to the province are banned until further notice.

Istanbul Municipality has sent aid to the province, sending vehicles for search and rescue efforts.

Four hospitals were evacuated in the province due to the damage done to the buildings. Footage showed patients waiting outside hospitals.

Crisscrossed by major fault lines, 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 İzmit, a city southeast of Istanbul. In 2011, a quake in the eastern city of Van killed more than 500.

Residents of İzmir's Seferihisar district shared footage of flooding on the streets following the earthquake that caused the sea level to rise.

Seferihisar Mayor İsmail Yetişkin said that the quake triggered a small-scale tsunami, with some fishermen having gone missing.

"According to the initial reports that I have received, there are fishermen out in the sea whom we have not heard from. We do not know their numbers. The sea level rose, so this is probably a small-scale tsunami and probably there are casualties," he said.

Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu urged citizens to refrain from using their personal vehicles.

"All we need is the roads. Leave them to search and rescue teams," Soylu said.

Meanwhile, a gamer's live recording has revealed the impact of the powerful magnitude earthquake in İzmir.

The earthquake was also caught live on a local TV station, prompting panic among the crew.

Residents of the Greek island of Samos, which has a population of about 45,000, were urged to stay away from coastal areas, Eftyhmios Lekkas, head of Greece's organization for anti-seismic planning, told Greece's Skai TV.

"It was a very big earthquake, it's difficult to have a bigger one," Lekkas was quoted as saying by Reuters.

Two teenagers were killed, Greek emergency officials said.

High tidal wave warnings were in place in Samos.

Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias called Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu to offer condolences over the earthquake. "The ministers agreed on mutual help and support in case of need," the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement.