Casualties, Major Damage Reported After Strong Earthquakes Hit Turkey, Greece

A magnitude 6.6 earthquake hit Greece’s Dodecanese Islands and Turkey’s Aegean coast on Friday.

According to the seismological laboratory of the University of Athens, the epicenter was located 24 kilometers (14.9 miles) to the north-west of the island of Samos at a depth of 10 kilometers.

The earthquake was also felt in Athens.

At the same time, the Turkish Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) has stated that an earthquake of the same magnitude was felt along Turkey’s Aegean coast.

The epicenter was located some 17 km (11 miles) off the coast of Izmir province, at a depth of 16 km, AFAD added.

According to Turkish media reports, tremors could be felt in numerous provinces in the country’s west, as well as in Istanbul.

Izmir’s Governor Yavuz Selim Köşger has issued a statement saying that up to 20 buildings have been destroyed in the province and that a crisis center has been established to investigate the matter.