A 6.1-magnitude earthquake in western Turkey toppled buildings at its epicenter on Sunday evening, killing one person and sending shock waves as far as Istanbul, over 120 miles away.
Many people in the cities and towns who felt the tremor fled into the streets in panic, and some scrambled to reach their loved ones. With aftershocks continuing to rattle the area, some people were staying outdoors.
Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said in televised remarks that one person, 81, was killed and 29 others were hurt in the disaster, the epicenter of which was the small western town of Sindirgi. Sixteen buildings in the town and surrounding villages collapsed, Mr. Yerlikaya said, adding that 12 of them had been vacant.
The authorities warned people to avoid structures that could be unstable. The interior minister said electricity and water service had not been disrupted.
Six people were rescued from a flattened building in Sindirgi, but one of them, the 81-year-old, later died, Mr. Yerlikaya said.
The health minister said four people were being treated in hospitals for minor injuries.
Sindirgi is a town of about 30,000 people, surrounded by mountains and in a region of forests and plains.
Turkey is crisscrossed by major fault lines that often produce strong tremors. In 2023, a 7.8-magnitude quake and its aftershocks killed more than 50,000 people in 11 eastern and southeastern Turkish cities and about 6,000 more in neighboring Syria.
Scientists for years have been warning that earthquakes in Turkey could be especially deadly because of shoddy construction and the abundance of old buildings not built to modern standards to withstand disasters.
Şafak Timur covers Turkey and is based in Istanbul.
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