A strong earthquake measuring 6.2 magnitude on the Richter scale shook Istanbul on Wednesday according to the Turkiye disaster agency AFAD. It is one of the strongest earthquakes to hit the city of 16 million people. The tremor occurred at 12:49 PM local time (2:49 PM Pakistan time) with an epicenter in Silivri about 80 kilometers west of Istanbul. At a shallow depth of 6.92 kilometers, the shaking was felt more strongly. Germany Geosciences Research Centre (GFZ) reported a marginally lower magnitude of 6.02 and a depth of 10 kilometers.
No reports of major damage have emerged so far but the earthquake caused widespread panic. Many fled from buildings and gathered in parks or stood in the street particularly in central Istanbul as powerful aftershocks continued. Some shops on the European side of the city closed temporarily. One person reportedly got injured after jumping off a balcony in fear during the quake. Luckily initial checks showed no damage to highways, airports, train stations or subways according to Transport Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu.
The Istanbul governor office confirmed that no buildings had collapsed and urged citizens to stay calm and avoid potentially unsafe structures. President Tayyip Erdogan said he is closely monitoring the situation and shared safety tips for any further tremors.
