Turkey earthquake: Tourist resorts at Izmir rocked by 5.9 magnitude tremor 100 miles away

Add to My Stories Share Tourists in resorts around Turkey's coastal city of Izmir have been rocked by an earthquake that has killed two people.The 5.9 magnitude quake hit the small town of Simav, about 100 miles north of Izmir, just before midnight and its effects were felt as far away as Istanbul.Terrified residents ran out of their homes and stayed sleeping in their cars for the rest of the night after being warned against going back inside.

Shaken: Buildings were damaged and some collapsed in Simav at the epicentre of the quakeTwo people are reported dead and 79 injured, although only one person is seriously hurt.The initial tremor was followed by around 50 aftershocks.No tourists are reported to have been injured, although TUI Travel, owner of Thomson and First Choice, confirmed that one of its hotels in Izmir had been affected.

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Fellow tour operator Thomas Cook reiterated that the earthquake occurred in a town quite remote from Izmir and said it had not affected programmes or excursions in the area.
There has been no immediate reports of damage at the ancient city of Ephesus, which is situated around 50 miles south of Izmir.

Tourist town: Izmir is popular with holidaymakersJust a year ago, 51 people were killed when a 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck eastern Turkey.And in 1999 a tremor measuring more than 7.0 on the Richter scale left 20,000 people dead in the industrialised Marmara region.Turkey is crossed by several major fault lines, making it particularly vulnerable to ear! thquakes .Just a week ago plans were unveiled to build two new cities outside Istanbul to house around 1.5million people living in 'at risk' areas in the metropolis.'Do not forget that Istanbul is under a major threat of an earthquake...this project would strengthen Istanbul's preparedness,' said Turkey's prime minster Recep Tayyip Erdogan.One of the two satellite cities will be built on the European side of the Bosphorus and another on the Asian side.