A moderately strong earthquake struck northwestern Turkey on Monday, sending people into the streets in panic. Local authorities have not yet reported casualties or damage.
The 5.1-magnitude quake struck in the Sea of Marmara, near the town of Gemlik in Bursa province, according to disaster management agency AFAD. The quake occurred at 10:42 a.m. local time (07:42 GMT), at a depth of about 9 kilometres (5.6 miles).
Turkish media said the quake was felt in Istanbul and other nearby areas, where people fled homes and offices in fear.
In February, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake devastated 11 southern and southeastern Turkish provinces, as well as parts of northern Syria. More than 50,000 people were killed in Turkey.
Turkey is crossed by fault lines and is prone to earthquakes. In 1999, two powerful quakes killed 18,000 people in northwestern Turkey. In 2020, more than 100 people were killed in a quake in the western city of Izmir.
