ATHENS/ISTANBUL: An earthquake of 6.4 magnitude struck off the coast of northern Greece yesterday and was felt as far away as neighbouring Turkey and Bulgaria but there were no reports of serious casualties or destruction, police and fire brigade officials said.
The US Geological Survey (USGS) said the quake occurred some 77km south-southwest of Alexandroupolis, between the islands of Lemnos and Samothrace, at a depth of 10km.
Greek police said the quake had caused minor damage to shops and houses on the two islands.
The USGS downwardly revised its first reading of 7.2.
Greece, at the southeastern end of Europe, is often buffeted by earthquakes. Most cause no serious damage but a 5.9 magnitude quake in 1999 killed 143 people.
“It lasted very long and it was very intense. We haven’t got the full picture of the damage caused yet,” the mayor of Lemnos, Antonis Chatzidiamantis, told Mega TV.
He said one woman — who a police official said was a British tourist — was slightly injured at the Aegean island’s airport when part of the ceiling collapsed.
“It was very strong — cupboards, glasses, coffee cups, they all broke,” an elderly Lemnos resident told Greek radio. The Athens Geodynamic Institute put the quake at 6.3.
Across the Aegean in parts of western Turkey on Saturday morning, panicked residents rushed into the streets as a tremor shook buildings, local media reported.
The quake also rattled Turkey’s most populous city, Istanbul, as well as the Aegean coastal city of Izmir, according to witnesses, but there were no immediate reports of damage.
Hurryiet Daily News said that the quake was also felt in the popular tourism province of Antalya. Thirty people were reported injured after jumping out of their apartment windows in the western town Canakkale, according to the newspaper.
Reuters
