Turkey earthquake: Teenager rescued from rubble of Izmir building
Rescuers cheer as they haul teenager from rubble of devastated eight-floor apartment block as death toll from deadly earthquake in Turkey and Greece hits 26 with more than 800 injured
- Search teams rescued Inci Okan, 16, and her dog Fistik from a collapsed building in Izmir, Turkey this morning
- Earthquake struck in the Aegean Sea between the Turkish coast and the Greek island of Samos on Friday
- At least 26 have died in disaster, including two teenagers in Greece, with more than 800 people also injured
Rescuers today hauled a teenager from the rubble of a devastated eight-floor apartment block as the death toll from an earthquake in Turkey and Greece soared to at least 26 with more than 800 injured.
Search teams continued their hunt for survivors on Saturday after the 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck in the Aegean Sea between the Turkish coast and the Greek island of Samos, toppling buildings in Izmir and triggering a small tsunami which flooded streets in Seferihisar, Turkey.
The mini-tsunami also reached Samos, where islanders were told to avoid the coast after some fled their homes because of the quake, which was also felt in Athens and nearby Albania, North Macedonia and Bulgaria.
Last night, search and rescue teams were pictured digging through heavy blocks of concrete in a desperate attempt to locate survivors who were trapped beneath the rubble.
Footage today captured onlookers cheering as emergency services lifted Inci Okan, 16, and her dog Fistik out of a fallen building in Izmir after the pair spent 17 hours trapped under the fallen building.
The teenager, who was injured in the wreckage, was rushed to hospital following her rescue.
Footage today captured onlookers cheering as emergency services lifted Inci Okan, 16, and her dog Fistik out of a fallen building in Izmir, Turkey (pictured) after the pair spent 17 hours trapped under building which toppled during an earthquake
Two other women, aged 53 and 35, were rescued from another collapsed two-storey building in Turkey. Pictured: An injured woman is carried from the rubble in Izmir
Emergency services carry an injured man from the rubble of a collapsed building after a powerful earthquake struck
Emergency services today continue to search for survivors in fallen buildings across Izmir, Turkey following the disaster
Relatives of the missing wait as rescuers search for survivors among the rubble of a collapsed building in Izmir after a powerful earthquake struck Turkey’s western coast and parts of Greece
People today sit around a fire in front of their tent after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake in the Aegean Sea, at Bayrakli district in Izmir, Turkey
At least 24 people were killed in Izmir, including an elderly woman who drowned, according to AFAD. Pictured: A survivor is lifted from a fallen building in Izmir today
The European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre said the quake had an epicentre eight miles from of the Greek island of Samos
Friends and relatives remained outside the building today for news of loved ones still trapped inside, including employees of a dentist’s surgery that was located on the ground floor.
Two other women, aged 53 and 35, were rescued from another collapsed two-storey building in Turkey.
At least 24 people were killed in Izmir, including an elderly woman who drowned, according to AFAD.
Two teenagers, 15 and 17, were killed on Samos after being struck by a collapsing wall as they walked home from school in Vathy.
At least 19 people were injured on the island, with two, including a 14-year-old, airlifted to Athens and seven taken to hospitals on the island, Greek health authorities said.
Rescue workers search for survivors in the rubble of a fallen building this morning after an 7.0-magnitude earthquake hit Izmir, Turkey on Friday
Members of rescue services carry the body of a victim from the debris of a collapsed building in Izmir, Turkey today
Pictured: Rescue teams continue to search for survivors and victims in Izmir, Turkey following yesterday’s earthquake
Gunay Ozisik, 14, who was under the rubble, was last night rescued as rescue teams continued their search for survivors
Rescue and health workers carry a dead body from a collapsed building after an earthquake in the Aegean Sea, at Bayrakli district in Izmir, Turkey
The earthquake, which was centred in the Aegean north-east of Samos, was felt across the eastern Greek islands and as far as Athens and in Bulgaria. Pictured: Izmir, Turkey last night
Pictured: An injured woman is carried out of a destroyed building on a stretcher after she was found among the rubble
Footage from the moment the earthquake hit on Friday shows a building collapse in Turkey, filling the air with dust as those nearby rush away from the danger
A destroyed building in Izmir, Turkey, after the earthquake in the Aegean on Friday which killed at least 26 people and injured nearly 800 others in Turkey
Rescuers carry an injured person from the debris of a fallen building after an earthquake in Izmir province of Turkey last night
Rescue workers trying to clean the debris of a collapsed building while searching for survivors on Friday night
Malik Tahirler, 28, is rescued from wreckage of a devastated building by the search and rescue teams in Bornova district
Rescue operations take place on a collapsed building after a powerful earthquake hit the Aegean Sea on Friday
Wounded people are cut free from the wreckage of a toppled building in Izmir, Turkey, after the earthquake struck on Friday
The earthquake, which was centred in the Aegean north-east of Samos, was felt across the eastern Greek islands and as far as Athens and in Bulgaria.
In Turkey, it shook the regions of Aegean and Marmara, including the country’s largest city Istanbul, whose governor said there were no reports of damage.
Debris was racing down Turkish streets after an apparent sea surge near Izmir where at least 17 buildings were destroyed and footage showed people climbing over the wreckage of collapsed multi-storey blocks.
According to Turkey’s disaster agency, at least 244 aftershocks were recorded, with 24 of them being more than four on the Richter scale.
A man, who was rescued from wreckage, is seen on Friday as search and rescue works continue at debris of a building located in Bornova district
Rescuers carry a man rescued from the debris of his collapsed house, in Izmir, Turkey on Friday
Rescue operations are in place after the 7.0 magnitude earthquake in the coastal province of Izmir
Debris was racing down Turkish streets after an apparent sea surge near Izmir amid a ‘mini-tsunami’ in Turkey and Greece which followed the earthquake in the Aegean Sea on Friday
Footage from the moment the earthquake hit on Friday shows a building collapse in Turkey, filling the air with dust as those nearby rush away from the danger.
Gokhan Kan, a 32-year-old courier, said: ‘I thought “Is it going to end?” It felt like 10 minutes, like it was never going to end.
‘I was terrified not for myself in that moment but for my family, my wife and four-year-old son.’
Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency said Friday’s earthquake was centred in the Aegean at a depth of 10.3 miles.
Interior minister Suleyman Soylu initially said six buildings had collapsed in two parts of Izmir, while mayor Tunc Soyer said nearly 20 buildings had collapsed in the province. It was later reported 17 buildings had fallen in Izmir.
At one site, Agriculture Minister Bekir Pakdemirli managed to establish mobile phone contact with a girl buried under the debris.
‘We ask you to remain calm,’ he told her in televised footage. ‘We will try to lift the concrete block and reach you.’
Rescue workers and local volunteers carry a wounded person on a stretcher after they were found in the debris of a building
Search and rescue teams work their way through the rubble of a collapsed building in Izmir, Turkey, after the country was struck by a magnitude 7 earthquake
The rubble of a flattened building is seen from the air as night falls over Izmir, Turkey, after the city was hit by an earthquake
Heavy lifting machinery is used to sift the rubble of a collapsed building in Izimir, Turkey, after it was hit by an earthquake
Dozens of buildings have been reported to be destroyed from the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that rocked Turkey and Greece
Rescue teams search through the debris of a collapsed building in Bayrakli district following the 7.0-magnitude earthquake
Search and rescue works continue to be carried out at debris of a building located in Bayrakli district after an earthquake shook Turkey’s Aegean Sea coast
Flooding on the Greek island of Samos where sea water covered a square after a sea surge came in the wake of the tremor
A statue of a lion looks over a flooded square with benches and trees surrounded by water at the Greek port of Vathi
A Greek Orthodox church was damaged in the town of Karlovasi after the island of Samos was hit by today’s earthquake
Greek firefighters look at a building which was knocked out of shape by the earthquake which hit the island of Samos today
An injured person is surrounded by medical helpers after being cut free from the wreckage in Izmir’s Bayrakli disrict today
People surround the claw of an excavator as they search for survivors at a collapsed building in Izmir today
People wearing masks look at an injured person being put on a stretcher as victims were taken for medical help in Izmir
Locals and officials search for survivors at a collapsed building after a strong earthquake struck the Aegean Sea on Friday and was felt in both Greece and Turkey
People look at a building which was knocked precariously off-balance by the earthquake which struck on Friday afternoon
The rescue operation begins as people climb over the wreckage of a collapsed building following the powerful earthquake
An aerial vivew of a pile of rubble in Turkey with dozens of rescuers and emergency workers on the scene as the light faded
Rescue workers sift through the rubble of building in Izmir, Turkey, after an earthquake that killed at least twelve
A small tsunami struck the Seferisar district of Izmir, said Haluk Ozener, director of the Istanbul-based Kandilli Observatory and Earthquake Research Institute.
Pictures from the Turkish disaster zone show smoke blowing over the city of Izmir, debris washed away by high waters, and dazed people trying to make their way through rubble piled high on the streets.
There were 38 ambulances, two ambulance helicopters and 35 medical rescue teams on the ground in Izmir late on Friday, where TV footage showed police using chainsaws as they tried to force their way through the rubble.
Local media said 70 people had been rescued alive from the debris.
Turkish media said the earthquake was felt across the regions of Aegean and Marmara, where Istanbul is located. However, Istanbul’s governor said there were no reports of damage.
Soylu said there were no reports of casualties from six other provinces where the earthquake was felt but added there were small cracks in some buildings.
Ilke Cide, a doctoral student who was in Izmir’s Guzelbahce region during the earthquake, said he went inland after waters rose after the earthquake.
‘I am very used to earthquakes… so I didn’t take it very seriously at first but this time it was really scary,’ he said, adding the earthquake had lasted for at least 25 to 30 seconds.
An injured woman is carried on a stretcher through a crowd of people at the scene of the disaster in the Bayrakli district
A man puts a mask over his face by the side of an emergency vehicle in the Bayrakli district during search and rescue works
A huge crowd of locals and emergency officials search the debris of one of the collapsed buildings in Izmir today
People look at the collapsed facade of a building in Izmir today with emergency services responding to Friday’s disaster
Seawater floods a shop at the port town of Vathy following a mini-tsunami caused by the earthquake on the island of Samo
A car is barely above water while a chair is partly submerged in a road in Vathi today after high waters brought by the quake
People walk past a damaged house on the Greek island of Samos where at least two people were killed in Friday’s earthquake
Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that ‘with all the means of our state, we stand by our citizens affected by the earthquake’.
‘We have taken action to start the necessary work in the region with all our relevant institutions and ministers,’ he added.
Greece’s prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis later spoke to Erdogan to offer condolences for the victims in Turkey, saying that ‘whatever our differences, these are the times when our people need to stand together’.
‘Erdogan tweeted: “Thank you, Mr. Prime Minister. That two neighbours show solidarity in difficult times is more valuable than many things in life.”‘
France, which has been locked in an angry row with Turkey in recent weeks, also offered its ‘full solidarity’ with both Turkey and Greece.
Tensions between Ankara and Paris had reached a peak last weekend when President Erdogan questioned the mental health of his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron.
Cars are covered in dirt at a quake-damaged site in Izmir shortly after the 7.0-magnitude pummelled Greece and Turkey
Buildings overlook a mountain of rubble while a car’s bonnet is covered in grime following the earthquake in Izmir
A woman holds her head as she looks at the ruins in Izmir while an excavator begins the clean-up operation in the Turkish city
Search and rescue works underway in Izmir on Friday with Turkish flags hanging from two nearby windows in the coastal city
A car submerged on Turkey’s Aegean Sea coastline yesterday after the mini-tsunami which followed the huge earthquake
People stand on the flooded promenade of the port town of Vathy following the earthquake in Greece on Friday
Boats anchored to the coast are seen damaged after the earthquake caused an apparent sea surge and resulted in flooding
A group of women wearing masks look at phones as they stand outside their homes following the earthquake in Turkey
A massive search and rescue operation underway in Izmir after the 7.0-magnitude quake barrelled into Turkey and Greece
The European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre said the quake had an epicentre eight miles from Samos, where the island’s 45,000 people were urged to stay away from coastal areas.
Greece’s top seismologist Eftyhmis Lekkas told Greek media: ‘It was a very big earthquake, it’s difficult to have a bigger one.’
A tsunami warning was issued, with residents of the Samos area told to stay away from the coast while water rose above the dock in the main harbour of Samos and flooded the street.
Media reports yesterday said two victims of the earthquake, the first to be reported in Greece, were aged 15 and 17, and were walking home from school in the port of Vathy when disaster struck.
‘Two unconscious youngsters were pulled from the rubble of a collapsed wall and taken to hospital for identification,’ the fire service said.
Boats were carried out from a harbour in Turkey (left) where debris was also seen floating along flooded streets (right)
Smoke over the city of Izmir which appeared to have taken the heaviest damage of the earthquake on the Turkish side
Damaged buildings are seen after a 7.0-magnitude quake shook Turkey’s Aegean Sea coast, in Seferihisar district of Izmir
Search and rescue works are being conducted at debris of a building in Bayrakli district, Izmir
At least 19 people were injured on the island, with two, including a 14-year-old, airlifted to Athens and seven taken to hospitals on the island, Greek health authorities said.
‘We have never experienced anything like it,’ said one local official. ‘People are panicking.’
Police said there was damage to some old buildings on the island.
Greece and Turkey are both situated in one of the world’s most active earthquake zones. In 1999, a 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck Turkey’s northwest, killing more than 17,000 people, including 1,000 in Istanbul.
Another quake in 2011 in the southeastern province of Van resulted in more than 600 deaths. In Greece, the last deadly quake killed two people on the island of Kos, near Samos, in July 2017.
