A powerful 6.1 magnitude earthquake hit Balikesir, a province in northwestern Turkey, on Sunday, leading to the collapse of approximately twelve buildings, as reported by an official. Two individuals were trapped under the rubble of a collapsed structure.
The seismic event, originating in the town of Sindirgi, caused tremors that reverberated up to 200 kilometers away in Istanbul, a metropolis with a population exceeding 16 million residents. Mayor Serkan Sak of Sindirgi informed HaberTurk that four individuals were successfully rescued from a collapsed building, while efforts were underway to reach two other trapped persons within the same edifice.
Furthermore, numerous residences crumbled in the nearby village of Golcuk, with the minaret of a mosque also falling in the village. The Disaster and Emergency Management Agency of Turkey stated that the earthquake triggered multiple aftershocks, including one registering at 4.6 magnitude, and advised the public against entering damaged structures.
Turkey, situated atop significant fault lines, experiences frequent seismic activity. In a devastating earthquake in 2023, measuring 7.8 magnitude, over 53,000 individuals lost their lives in Turkey, with hundreds of thousands of buildings destroyed or damaged across 11 southern and southeastern provinces. Additionally, approximately 6,000 casualties were recorded in the northern regions of neighboring Syria.