Powerful 6.2-magnitude quake hits off Istanbul coast

ISTANBUL: A 6.2-magnitude earthquake hit the Sea of Marmara near Istanbul on Wednesday (Apr 23), with its impact and that of multiple aftershocks forcing thousands out onto the streets in panic across Türkiye’s  largest city.

The quake was followed by more than 50 aftershocks, some very powerful, the interior minister said, although there were no reports of major damage or serious injury.

“An earthquake of 6.2 magnitude occurred in Silivri, Sea of Marmara, Istanbul,” Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on X, adding that it was felt in the surrounding provinces.

The initial quake struck at 12.49 pm (0949 GMT) at a depth of 6.92km under the sea, which lies to the south of the city, and lasted 13 seconds, he said.

“By 3.12 pm (1212 GMT), 51 aftershocks – the largest of which was 5.9 magnitude – had been recorded,” he said.

As buildings shook, people rushed onto the streets where crowds of worried-looking people stared at their mobile phones for information or made calls, an AFP correspondent said.

“I just felt an earthquake, I’ve got to get out,” a shaken-looking decorator, who did not want to give his name, said while fleeing a fourth-storey apartment where he was working near the city’s Galata Tower.

Istanbul governor Davut Gul said nobody had died in the quake or the aftershocks but confirmed that hospitals were treating “151 people injured when they jumped or tried to jump from a height in panic”.