No Life Lost As Earth Quake Hits Turkey, Destroys Buildings

5.6 Magnitude Earthquake Occur In Denizli Of Turkey

A moderate 5.6 magnitude earthquake has struck in Turkey’s western province of Denizli today, damaging some buildings and knocking bricks and tiles to the ground in the rural area, according to officials and the Turkish quake monitor.

The Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) said the quake in Acipayam, in the province of Denizli, was followed by two aftershocks.

Turkey’s Kandilli Observatory said the earthquake, which stuck at 9:34 a.m.(0634 GMT), was 5 km deep and followed by four aftershocks between 4.2 and 3.4 magnitude.

The United States Geological Survey said it was 5.7 magnitude while the European monitoring service measured it at 6.4 magnitude.

“This is the biggest quake that I felt, I was outside but it was shaking very much,” Sahin Agah, 30, resident of the town of Acipayam near the epicenter, told Reuters by phone.

“I saw some roof tiles, bricks and solar water heaters fell from the roofs.

“There are some cracks in buildings. I did not see any building collapsed. Everyone is outside,” Agah said.

Administrators from the districts of Ucari and Yenikoy, the epicenter of the quake, said on NTV some 20 buildings and houses were damaged.

State news agency Anadolu reported that the impact of the quake was felt throughout the Aegean region and south of the Marmara Sea.

Officials were still assessing the damage.

Yenikoy resident Muharrem Gezi said there was minor damage in his village.

“I saw some chimneys broken and roof tiles falling on the streets.

“Some garden walls collapsed as well. Everyone is scared and outside. No one is injured,” he told Reuters.

Turkey lies on major fault lines and has suffered devastating earthquakes in the past, including one near Istanbul in 1999 that killed over 17,000 people.