Magnitude 5.5 earthquake strikes off Turkey's Mediterranean coast

ANKARA: An earthquake of magnitude 5.5 struck off the coast of Turkey’s Mediterranean coastal province of Antalya on Saturday, the Kandilli Observatory said.

The earthquake occurred at a depth of 93.3 km (58 miles), it said, after revising the magnitude up from 5.4.

Turkish media said the earthquake was felt in Antalya and neighbouring provinces. There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage to buildings.

READ: Strong earthquake kills 19 people in Turkey and Greek islands

It is pertinent to note that earlier last month, at least nineteen people were killed in Turkey and Greece after a strong earthquake had struck the Aegean Sea, bringing buildings crashing down and setting off tidal waves which slammed into coastal areas and islands.

People ran onto streets in panic in the Turkish city of Izmir, witnesses said, after the quake struck with a magnitude of up to 7.0. Neighbourhoods were deluged with surging seawater which swept debris inland and left fish stranded as it receded.

Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) said 17 people died, one due to drowning, while 709 people were injured. On the Greek island of Samos two teenagers, a boy and a girl, were found dead in an area where a wall had collapsed.