World

Magnitude 5.3 quake jolts Turkey, causes minor damage

Magnitude 5.3 quake jolts Turkey, causes minor damage

By ASSOCIATED PRESS

Rescue teams and firefighters search for possible survivors in the debris of a collapsed building in the Zeytinburnu district of Istanbul, on Friday, January 13, 2017. Photo: AP

ANKARA: Turkey's seismology center says a 5.3-magnitude earthquake, centered beneath the Aegean sea, shook the Turkish coast. The state-run news agency said the quake damaged a number of houses in five villages and at least four people were injured.

The earthquake struck off the coast of Ayvacik, in Turkey's northwestern Canakkale province at 6:51 (0351 GMT) on Monday, according to the Istanbul-based Kandilli Observatory's seismology center. It was followed by a magnitude 4.9 aftershock. The state-run Anadolu Agency said some homes in the villages of Tasagil, Tuzla, Yukari, Cam and Gulpinar, near Ayvacik, were damaged or demolished. At least four people were hurt. Earthquakes are common in Turkey, which sits on top of active fault lines.