Doha – A strong earthquake measuring 6.2 magnitude struck off the coast of Istanbul on Wednesday, sending residents rushing into the streets in panic and resulting in more than 150 injuries, though no fatalities have been reported.
The tremor occurred at 12:49 p.m. local time (09:49 GMT) in the Sea of Marmara near Silivri, about 70 kilometers (40 miles) west of Istanbul, according to Turkiye’s Disaster and Emergency Management Agency (AFAD). The quake had a shallow depth of approximately 7-10 kilometers.
“The quake lasted a total of 13 seconds,” said Turkiye’s Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya, who added that 51 aftershocks have been recorded so far, the largest measuring 5.9 magnitude. “Let’s not let down our guard against possible aftershocks,” Yerlikaya warned on social media.
Istanbul authorities confirmed that 151 people were injured “due to panic, jumping from heights,” with the governor’s office stating that “their treatments are ongoing in hospitals, and they are not in life-threatening condition.”
Residents described moments of intense shaking and confusion as buildings trembled throughout the city. Many reported being thrown off balance and initially struggling to comprehend what was happening as the tremor unfolded.
The sudden nature of the event left people disoriented before they realized they were experiencing an earthquake.
One abandoned building in the historic Fatih district partially collapsed, but no residential buildings suffered significant damage.
The earthquake disrupted daily life as people evacuated buildings and gathered in parks, school yards, and other open spaces. Some residents even pitched tents in parks out of fear of returning to buildings.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan addressed the situation, saying, “Thank God, there does not seem to be any problems for now. May God protect our country and our people from all kinds of calamities, disasters, accidents and troubles.”
Transport Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu confirmed that initial inspections revealed no damage to highways, airports, trains, or subways.
The earthquake revived fears among Istanbul’s 16 million residents who live in a seismically active region. Turkiye sits at the junction of three tectonic plates—the Eurasian, Arabian, and African—making it particularly vulnerable to earthquakes.
This tremor comes just two years after Turkiye’s deadliest modern earthquake, when a 7.8-magnitude quake in February 2023 killed more than 50,000 people in southern Turkiye and northern Syria. It also stirred memories of the 1999 earthquake near Istanbul that claimed 17,000 lives.
Turkish seismologists have long warned that Istanbul is overdue for a major earthquake, noting that historically the city has experienced serious seismic events approximately every 250 years, with the last major Istanbul earthquake occurring in 1766.
In response to these concerns, both national and local governments have launched urban reconstruction projects to fortify at-risk buildings and demolish structures in danger of collapse.
