Strong earthquake shakes Istanbul

An earthquake measuring 5.8 magnitudes shook Istanbul on Thursday, causing panic among residents, the evacuation of schools and public offices, and at least some damage to buildings.

Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority said in a statement that the quake struck in the Sea of Marmara at 13:59 pm (10:59 GMT) at 6.9 kilometers below ground.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said eight people were injured and had received treatment. “Apart from small damage, we have not received any reports so far that would pain our hearts,” he said.

Health Minister Fahrettin Koca on Twitter confirmed there were no deaths.

Buildings shook, children were assembled and hurried out of schools, and office workers rushed out into streets of Europe’s largest city.

In central Istanbul, the quake could be felt for as long as 15 seconds, shaking glassware and knocking over furnishings. In the Istanbul district of Avcilar, on the European side of the Bosphorus, the quake knocked down a minaret of a mosque.

The quake was reportedly felt in neighboring provinces. On Tuesday, a 4.6-magnitude earthquake also hit off Silivri, a district of Istanbul province.

Turkey is crossed by fault lines and prone to earthquakes.

More than 200 were killed and 1,000 injured after a powerful 7.2 earthquake hit southeastern Turkey on 23 October 2011.

Most of the victims were in the town of Ercis where dozens of buildings collapsed.

In 1999 a quake measuring 7.6 struck the city of Izmit, 90 km southeast of Istanbul, killing more than 17,000 people. Since then buildings codes have been tightened and laws requiring earthquake insurance have been passed.

But many fear lax enforcement and poor urban planning during a two-decade-long construction boom throughout the city leave Istanbul unprepared for a major seismic event.

“The only good thing about today’s Istanbul earthquake has been the widespread realization that there are woefully insufficient open spaces to go to in the event of an evacuation and that we are woefully unprepared for the Big One in Istanbul,” Can Okar, a financial strategist who is a commentator on Turkish affairs wrote on Twitter.

“Kids should be getting earthquake readiness education, more open spaces need to be created, comms plans set up, local evacuation protocols published, emergency responses codified and emergency kits deployed.”