A magnitude 5.0 earthquake struck the Marmara Sea off the coast of Tekirdağ province in northwestern Turkey on Thursday, shaking İstanbul and surrounding cities but causing no immediate reports of major damage or casualties, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.
Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) said on X that the earthquake hit at 2:55 p.m. local time off Marmaraereğlisi, at a depth of nearly 7 kilometers (4 miles). The agency said field inspections were continuing but “no adverse situation” had been reported so far.
The governor’s offices of İstanbul and Tekirdağ also said there were no reports of structural damage or injuries. They urged residents to avoid approaching buildings that might have been affected until inspections are completed.
In İstanbul the tremor caused panic, with people rushing out of homes, schools and office buildings. Students were evacuated from classrooms and parents hurried to collect their children. Some court staff in Bakırköy left the courthouse and waited outside.
“I felt a strong jolt from below, so we ran outside,” Hüsnü Şahin, a resident of İstanbul’s Fatih district, told Anadolu. “Of course there’s fear. We live in an earthquake zone, but we don’t know what to do.”
Airports in İstanbul continued operating without disruption. Officials at both Sabiha Gökçen and İstanbul Airport said inspections of runways and terminals found no problems and that flights were unaffected.
Turkey is among the most earthquake-prone countries in the world. In February 2023 two massive quakes in the country’s south and southeast killed more than 53,000 people and left millions homeless.
Most recently, a powerful 6.2-magnitude earthquake struck the Marmara Sea near the western outskirts of İstanbul on April 23, shaking Turkey’s largest city and sending residents into the streets in fear. The tremor did not cause any major damage or injuries.