The earthquake had its epicenter in Sindirigi, in the province of Balikesir.
An earthquake of magnitude 6.1 shook western Turkey this Monday, with no casualties detected so far, although there is evidence of some damaged buildings.
The tremor occurred at 22:48 local time (19:48 GMT) with epicenter in the municipality of Sindirgibelonging to the province of Balikesiras reported by the Turkish emergency management agency AFAD. The earthquake, which occurred at a depth of almost six kilometers, was strongly felt in several provinces in the west of the country, including Bursa, Manisa and Izmirin addition to Istanbullocated about 200 kilometers to the northeast.
Material damage, no deaths reported in Türkiye so far
The first images broadcast by Turkish television showed cracked buildings, debris on vehicles and at least one collapsed tower, in the epicenter area.
Despite the material damage, authorities have not yet reported any victims and emergency teams remain on alert for possible aftershocks. “We are monitoring the situation together with all relevant institutions. For now, no major negative effects have been detected.“said the Minister of Health, Kemal Memisogluin network X.
Sindirgi It had already been the epicenter, on August 10, of another earthquake of similar magnitude (6.1), which left one dead and more than fifty injured, in addition to structural damage to several buildings. Since then, the region has recorded small seismic movements that kept its 32,000 inhabitants on alert.
Türkiye sits on major geological faults and earthquakes are frequent. In February 2023a devastating earthquake of magnitude 7.8 caused more than 53,000 deaths in the south of the country and left hundreds of thousands of people homeless. The new earthquake in Balikesir once again reminds us of the vulnerability of the territory and the urgency of reinforcing the anti-seismic infrastructure in one of the most unstable areas of the planet.
Source: Ambito
