Istanbul, April 23: A 6.2 magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Silivri in the Sea of Marmara late Tuesday, jolting Istanbul and nearby provinces, according to Turkiye’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD). There were no immediate reports of injuries or structural damage.
The quake, which occurred at a shallow depth of 10 kilometers, was centered about 40 kilometers southwest of Istanbul, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported. Residents across multiple regions felt the tremors, but emergency teams have not confirmed any casualties or destruction.
“Following the 6.2 magnitude earthquake that occurred off the coast of Silivri in the Marmara Sea, aftershocks are occurring one after another,” AFAD stated.
Turkiye lies at the intersection of two major fault lines and has a long history of destructive seismic activity. Tuesday’s event comes just over a year after a deadly magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck the country’s southern region on February 6, 2023. A second powerful tremor followed hours later, leaving a trail of devastation across 11 provinces and claiming more than 53,000 lives.
The February 2023 quake also impacted northern Syria, where at least 6,000 people were reported killed. Over hundreds of thousands of buildings across both countries were either destroyed or severely damaged in what became one of the region’s deadliest seismic disasters.
While Tuesday’s earthquake caused momentary panic, authorities have continued to monitor the situation closely, warning of potential aftershocks in the coming hours.
