A powerful earthquake of magnitude 6.7 killed two people and injured scores more when it struck near major Turkish and Greek tourist destinations in the Aegean Sea early on Friday, Turkish and Greek officials said.

Local officials said at least two people died and 100 were injured on the Greek holiday island of Kos, a popular destination particularly with British holidaymakers.

Across a narrow Aegean Sea waterway in Turkey’s Bodrum, around 70 people were admitted to hospital, injured in their attempts to flee the overnight temblor which struck at 1.31 a.m. local time (2230 GMT Thursday).

The tremor is the second in the broader region exceeding a magnitude of 6.0 this year, a level which can cause considerable damage.

A local hospital official said 100 people were injured, most slightly.

Greek authorities had dispatched helicopters to airlift the injured to the larger island of Rhodes for treatment, Yiorgos Hadjimarkou, the head of the South Aegean region said.

“Our primary concern right now is (safeguarding) human life,” he told Greek state broadcaster ERT.

Police sources said the roof of a bar in Kos collapsed.

The Greek coastguard said damage was reported to the port of Kos, which is near a tourist strip of cafes and bars. A passenger ferry was unable to dock because of extensive damage.

The European quake agency EMSC said a small tsunami could be caused by the quake, but Turkish broadcasters cited officials saying large waves were more likely.

Several stores were damaged in Bodrum’s Gumbet district as a result of rising sea levels, store owners told broadcaster NTV.

A local Kos website, Kostoday.com, showed images of rising sea levels and parts of the tourist strip flooded, and large chunks of rubble elsewhere. One showed the picture of a small fishing boat on a road.

The temblor, initially reported as a magnitude 6.9, was very shallow, only 10 km below the seabed, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

Turkish and Greek authorities put its magnitude lower at 6.3 and 6.4. Local authorities said the quake was felt across the Aegean coast.

In Turkey, emergency authorities warned citizens about aftershocks, and added there were no casualties or major damage in Turkey.

“Our people should know that aftershocks are continuing, so they should refrain from entering damaged or vulnerable structures,” Mehmet Halis Bilden, head of Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency told broadcaster CNN Turk.

Television footage from the Mugla province showed hundreds of people abandoning buildings and waiting on the streets. It showed cars shaking and products falling off shelves at stores across the region.

Mugla Governor Esengul Civelek told a news conference that initial reports showed there was no major damage, though Mayor Osman Gurun said power outages hit parts of the province.

Turkey is prone to earthquakes because it is located between the Arabian plate and Eurasian plate.

More than 600 people died in October 2011 in Turkey’s eastern province of Van after a quake of 7.2 magnitude and powerful aftershocks.

In 1999, two massive earthquakes killed about 20,000 people in the densely populated northwest of the country. A 5.9 magnitude quake in 1999 killed 143 people in Greece. </s> An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.2 shook western Turkey and the Greek island of Lesbos on Monday, injuring at least 10 people and damaging buildings, authorities said. The earthquake's epicenter was in the Aegean Sea at a very shallow depth of seven kilometres and hit at 3:28 p.m. , Turkey's Disaster and Emergency Management said.

Start the conversation, or Read more at Medincine Hat News. </s> At least two people have been killed and more than 100 have been injured after a strong earthquake struck Greek islands and Turkey’s Aegean coast early Friday morning, authorities said.

Buildings on the Greek island of Kos sustained structural damage from the earthquake, the city’s mayor, Giorgos Kyritsis, told state-run Greek media.

"The buildings affected were mostly old and were built before the earthquake building codes were introduced," Kyritsis said.

The coast guard announced the island's port was part of the structural damage.

Giorgos Halkidios, a government official for the island of Kos, said more than 100 people were injured in the quake.

The 6.7-magnitude earthquake was centered six miles south of Bodrum, Turkey, and 10 miles east-northeast of Kos, according to the U.S. Geological Survery.

According to Turkish disaster officials, more than 20 aftershocks have been recorded.

The BBC reported a small tsunami occurred on the Turkish coast.

Greece and Turkey lie in an especially earthquake-prone zone.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. </s> An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.2 has shaken western Turkey and the Greek island of Lesbos.

It was not immediately clear if the quake had caused any major damage in Turkey or Greece. Earthquakes are common in both countries.

Turkey's Disaster and Emergency Management said the earthquake was in the Aegean Sea at a depth of more than four miles and hit at 3.28pm local time.

Tremors were also felt in densely-populated Istanbul and in the western Turkish provinces of Izmir.

State-run radio in Greece said hundreds of residents left buildings and waited out in the street in Lesbos' capital, Mytilene.

The debris of a damaged building after an earthquake in the village of Plomari on the northeastern Greek island of Lesbos. Manolis Lagoutaris/InTime News via AP

Authorities in Lesbos said dozens of homes were damaged in parts of the island and some roads were closed, but there were no reports of serious injuries.

"We are advising residents in affected areas of Lesbos to remain outdoors until buildings can be inspected," senior seismologist Efthimios Lekkas said.

In Turkey, 61-year old Ayse Selvi felt the tremors in her summer home in Karaburun near the quake's epicentre.

"My God, all the picture frames fell on the ground and I have no idea how I ran out. I'm scared to go inside now."

Her sister Seval Isci, 57, was ironing at home in Izmir when the earthquake hit and left her home along with the other residents of the building when the first aftershock hit.

"We were really scared," she said.

Turkey's emergency management agency said there were no reports of casualties in the country.

Two devastating earthquakes hit northwestern Turkey in 1999, killing some 18,000 people. </s> ISTANBUL (AP) – An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.2 shook western Turkey and the Greek island of Lesbos Monday, scaring residents and damaging buildings.

Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management said that the earthquake’s epicenter was in the Aegean Sea at the very shallow depth of seven kilometers (some four miles) and hit at 3:28 p.m. (1228 GMT). At least 20 aftershocks were recorded. Tremors were felt in densely populated Istanbul and in the western Turkish provinces of Izmir.

Authorities in Lesbos said dozens of homes were damaged in parts of the island and some roads were closed, but there were no reports of serious injuries., “We are advising residents in affected areas of Lesbos to remain outdoors until buildings can be inspected.” senior seismologist Efthimios Lekkas said.

In Turkey, 61-year old Ayse Selvi felt the tremors in her summer home in Karaburun near the quake’s epicenter. “My God, all the picture frames fell on the ground and I have no idea how I ran out. I’m scared to go inside now.”

Her sister Seval Isci, 57, was ironing at home in Izmir when the earthquake hit and left her home along with the other residents of the building when the first aftershock hit. “We were really scared,” she said.

Turkey’s emergency management agency said there were no reports of casualties in the country.

State-run radio in Greece said hundreds of residents left buildings and waited out in the street in Lesbos’ capital, Mytilene.

Earthquakes are frequent in Greece and Turkey, which are on active fault lines. Two devastating earthquakes hit northwestern Turkey in 1999, killing some 18,000 people. </s> At least two people were killed on the Greek island of Kos Friday when a magnitude 6.7 earthquake shook the popular summer resort holiday destinations of the Dodecanese Islands in Greece and the Aegean coast of Turkey.

The epicentre of the quake was approximately 10.3 kilometres (6.4 miles) south of the major Turkish resort of Bodrum, a magnet for holidaymakers in the summer, and 16.2 kilometres east of the island of Kos in Greece, the US Geological Survey said.

It had a depth of 10 kilometres, USGS said.

Two people were killed on the Greek island of Kos, the ANA news agency reported. The quake caused injury and damage, the agency cited the island's mayor as saying.

In the Turkish resort of Bodrum, television pictures showed throngs of worried residents and holidaymakers in the streets.

"The biggest problem at the moment are electricity cuts in certain areas (of the city)," Bodrum mayor Mehmet Kocadon told NTV television.

"There is light damage and no reports that anyone has been killed" in the area.

The governor of the southern Mugla province -- where Bodrum is located -- said some people had been slightly injured after falling out of windows in panic.

The quake was also felt on the Datca peninsula -- also a major resort area -- as well as Turkey's third city of Izmir on the Aegean to the north.

An AFP correspondent holidaying in Bodrum said the major earthquake had been followed by several aftershocks.

"The bed shook a lot. Some bottles fell and broke in the kitchen and the patio," said Turkish pensioner Dilber Arikan who has a summer house in the area.

"I screamed I was very scared because I was alone."

The quake was also felt by holidaymakers on the Greek island of Rhodes.

"We were very surprised. We were scared and we immediately went outside," Teddy Dijoux, who was holidaying with his family at a Rhodes resort, told AFP.

"That lasted a long time. I quickly gathered up my children to leave the hotel," said holidaymaker Sylvie Jannot.

Turkey and Greece sit on significant fault lines and have regularly been hit by earthquakes in recent years.

This year alone, Turkey's western Aegean coast was hit by several significant earthquakes, which brought back memories of past deadly earthquakes.

In June, a 6.3-magnitude earthquake gutted a village on the Greek island of Lesbos, killing a woman and leaving more than 15 injured. The quake also caused panic on Turkey's Aegean coast.

On August 17, 1999, a huge earthquake measuring more than 7.0 magnitude near the city of Izmit devastated vast areas in the country's densely populated northwestern zone, notably around Istanbul, killing over 17,000 people. </s> Two people were killed and at least 100 injured after a magnitude-6.7 earthquake rocked popular Greek and Turkish tourist destinations on the Aegean Sea early Friday, the U.S. Geological Survey and officials said.

The earthquake sent tourists and locals running into the streets on the Greek island of Kos and the Turkish port city of Bodrum shortly after 1.30 a.m. (6.30 p.m. Thursday ET), according to the Associated Press.

Both destinations are popular with European vacationers during the summer high-season.

The quake struck about 6.2 miles south-southeast of Bodrum but most of the damage was recorded on Kos, which is southwest of Turkey's southeastern coast, according to the Associated Press.

The two victims were killed when a building collapsed on the island. It was not immediately clear if they were locals or tourists.

Kos has also helped bear the brunt of the on-going refugee crisis, as people make the treacherous journey across the sea from the Libyan coast to try to reach Europe. It was not clear if refugees were among the injured.

Greece's deputy minister of shipping and island policy said on state TV that most of the injuries are believed to be minor. The temblor has prompted a warning to avoid beaches.

"I saw everything shake. We really felt it. Everyone is in fear and out on the street," Elif Bereketli, 30, a journalist who was in Aydin province in Turkey, told NBC News by phone.

"We left the house after multiple aftershocks. There are probably more than a hundred people around me." Bereketli planned to spend the night outside rather than risk returning to the building.

Greek radio reported that two people were killed on the Greek island of Kos after a bar in an old building collapsed. The mayor of Kos confirmed the deaths to Reuters and said several other people were injured in the collapse.

The Turkish Prime Ministry's Disaster and Emergency Management Authority said the earthquake registered magnitude 6.3 on its scale.

A USGS seismologist said that people would have felt strong shaking and that items likely would have been knocked off walls. Videos posted to Twitter showed people fleeing buildings into the darkened streets, bricks knocked off building exteriors and people huddling under desks.

Sedat Zincirkiran, 62, was on a sailboat about 17 nautical miles from the reported epicenter when the earthquake struck.

"I felt a big kick on the boat from the depths. We ran to deck to see what was happening. It was really severe. It lasted about 30 seconds, and aftershocks keep happening,” Zincirkiran told NBC News by phone. "One is happening as I'm speaking to you."

Greece and Turkey lie in an especially earthquake-prone zone. Bodrum, in Muğla Province, is in southwestern Turkey. The quake occurred about 10 miles east-northeast of the Greek island of Kos. Guests at a hotel in Kos said the building was evacuated.

Mugla Mayor Osman Gurun said that power was out in certain parts of the province and that telephone operators experienced shortages because of overloads, according to Reuters. Bodrum Mayor Mehmet Kocadon said the earthquake caused minor cracks on some old buildings.

Smaller quakes of 4.4 and 4.7 magnitude were recorded near Kos in the hour after the larger earthquake, the USGS said.

The independent European quake agency EMSC warned people in Bodrum and Kos to avoid beaches. A sea-level monitoring station in Bodrum reported that the sea level rose by about seven-eighths of a centimeter after the quake.

Officials told Turkish broadcasters that large waves were more likely rather than a tsunami, Reuters reported. </s> At least two people were killed by a strong earthquake that struck Greece and Turkey in the early morning hours Friday, sending thousands of panicked vacationers and locals streaming outside.

Hundreds of people were wounded across the region as buildings rattled and shook. Some people leapt from balconies and many others sustained light injuries while fleeing their homes, reports the Associated Press.

The two men who died were on the Greek island of Kos, when the bar they were in collapsed on top of them. It is peak tourist season on the resort island, and the men were visiting from Sweden and Turkey, reports Reuters, citing local police.

On Kos alone, more than a hundred people were injured, a dozen seriously, including a Swedish tourist who lost a leg.

"All of a sudden it felt like a train was going right through the room," Vernon Hausman, a German tourist told Reuters.

The magnitude 6.7 quake struck about six miles from Bodrum, Turkey, near the southwestern tip of the country and close to the famed Greek Isles beloved by tourists, according to the United States Geological Survey. It hit around 1:30 a.m. local time and was followed by several aftershocks .

Many people spent the night trying to sleep outdoors. Some travelers rushed to the airport on Kos, only to find flights had been cancelled Friday.

The USGS puts the depth of the quake at 10 kilometers — or about six miles — a relatively shallow level that contributed to the widespread damage, says AP. A small tsunami also struck, scattering cars and boats across the Aegean Sea coastline, says Reuters.

The region is prone to earthquakes, owing to its location between shifting plates, reports The Telegraph. </s> A powerful earthquake struck Greek islands and Turkey's Aegean coast early Friday morning, damaging buildings and a port and killing at least two people, authorities said.Kos Mayor Giorgos Kyritsis told state-run Greek media that two people had been killed and a number injured on the island. He didn't elaborate.The island's port was among structures that sustained damaged and a ferry en route there was not docking, the coast guard said.The fire department separately said three injured people had been rescued from rubble on Kos.The 6.7-magnitude quake was centered 6 miles (10 kilometers) south of Bodrum, Turkey, and 10 miles (16 kilometers) east-northeast of Kos about 1:30 a.m., according to the U.S. Geological Survey. It said the quake had a depth of 6 miles (10 kilometers).According to Turkish disaster officials, the earthquake had a magnitude of 6.3, and more than 20 aftershocks have been recorded.Esengul Civelek, governor of Mugla province, said there were no casualties according to initial assessments. She said "there were minor injuries due to fear and panic."In Bitez, a resort town about 6 kilometers (4 miles) west of Bodrum, the quake sent frightened residents running into the streets.Hotel guests briefly returned to their rooms to pick up their belongings but chose to spend the rest of the night outside, with some using sheets and cushions borrowed from nearby lounge chairs to build makeshift beds, according to an AP reporter on the scene.Greece and Turkey lie in an especially earthquake-prone zone.
A 6.7 magnitude earthquake in the Aegean Sea near Greece and Turkey kills two people and injures more than 520 others.