Magnitude 6.1 earthquake rocks Turkey; 22 injured as buildings collapse

Ankara: A strong earthquake struck western Turkey on Monday night, toppling several already-damaged buildings and injuring at least 22 people, officials said. There were no immediate reports of fatalities.

The magnitude 6.1 quake was centred in the town of Sindirgi in Balikesir province, according to Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD). It hit at 22:48 local time (01:18 IST) at a shallow depth of 5.99 kilometres and was followed by a series of aftershocks.

The tremor was felt across a wide area, including Istanbul and the nearby provinces of Bursa, Manisa and Izmir.

Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said that at least three unoccupied buildings and a two-storey shop in Sindirgi collapsed. The structures had previously sustained damage in an earlier earthquake.

According to Balikesir Governor Ismail Ustaoglu, 22 people were injured after falling or panicking during the quake.

Sindirgi District Administrator Dogukan Koyuncu told the state-run Anadolu Agency that, “So far, we have not identified any loss of life, but we are continuing our assessment,”

As aftershocks continued through the night, many residents remained outdoors, too fearful to return to their homes. Haberturk television reported that mosques, schools and sports halls were opened to provide temporary shelter as rain began to fall.

Sindirgi was struck by another magnitude 6.1 earthquake in August, which killed one person and injured dozens. The wider Balikesir region has since experienced several smaller tremors.

Turkey lies on multiple major fault lines and is prone to frequent and sometimes devastating earthquakes. In 2023, a magnitude 7.8 quake in the south of the country killed more than 53,000 people, destroying or damaging hundreds of thousands of buildings across 11 provinces. Another 6,000 people died in neighbouring Syria.

AP