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> There are fears the quake on Monday (June 12) could be the first of many tremors during the summer when the Aegean Sea region is full of tourists from the rest of Europe.

Greece and Turkey have suffered thousands of earthquakes over the centuries and sit on the edge of a number of tectonic plates.

The Aegean Sea sees a number of plates rubbing up against each other — the Eurasian plate contains both the Greek and Anatolian microplates, while the African plate is further south.

It is the friction between these two microplates that often causes quakes.

The epicenter of the quake was three miles south of Plomari, on the coast of Lesbos.

Several buildings were damaged in the village of Vrisa, where 10 people were taken to hospital.

The first quake was at 3.28 pm local time and was followed by two sizable aftershocks.

The Mayor of Vrisa said the town looked as if it had been "flattened by bombs."

"Yesterday's earthquake is known as an intraplate event. There is a crack in the crust of the Earth and there are a lot of stresses in that region. The African plate is pushing northwards, and has being doing so for 50 million years, and it causes stresses in the Eurasian plate and it can get released in weaknesses in that plate," Jennifer Weston, a seismologist with the International Seismological Center, told Sputnik.

She said there were thankfully only minimal casualties from the Lesbos quake because it took place in an area which is not densely populated.

But she said further east was the Anatolian fault, which runs close to Istanbul and several other cities.

"You cannot predict earthquakes. There is a lot we still do not know about them. We know this area is more likely to have them and if you have an event like yesterday you are more likely to have aftershocks but you can't predict when and where," Ms. Weston said.

She said the Lesbos earthquake measured 6.3 on the "moment magnitude," which measures how much energy is released.

The Richter scale is a better known scale but is nowadays used less by seismologists.

"The largest magnitude ever recorded was in Chile in 1960 and that was 9.5," she told Sputnik. The 1960 earthquake, near Valdivia in southern Chile, killed at least 1,000 people and left around two million homeless.

In May, an earthquake measuring 5.8 hit the Pacific coast of Mexico.

Many earthquakes hit uninhabited areas, but the San Andreas Fault in California runs through Los Angeles and several other areas of dense population.

Next year California will start rolling out an early warning system which they hope will tip the state off when the next major quake hits the state. </s> An earthquake measuring 6.4 on the Richter Scale struck at a point in the Aegean Sea on the afternoon of June 12, and was felt in Bulgarian capital city Sofia.

The earthquake was epicentred at a point 38.84N and 26.33E, at a depth of 10km, according to the European Mediterranean Seismological Centre.

It happened at 12.28pm UTC, 3.28pm in Sofia, where the quake was particularly felt by people in tall buildings.

The centre said that the location of the quake was 85km north-west of Izmir in Turkey and 14km south of Plomarion in Greece.

Another quake happened at 3.35pm, measured at five on the Richter scale.

The US Geological Survey said that the 3.28pm earthquake was 6.3 on the Richter scale. It stated the epicentre as 11km south of Plomarion, at a depth of 5.7km.

Turkey’s seismological institute said that it was 6.2 on the Richter scale, while the geophysical institute in the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki said that it was 6.4 Richter scale. </s> People look at the debris of a damaged building after an earthquake in the village of Plomari on the northeastern Greek island of Lesbos, Monday, June 12, 2017. A Turkish government agency says an earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.2 has shaken western Turkey. The Greek island of Lesbos has also been rattled.

ISTANBUL — 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 kilometers (some four miles) and hit at 3:28 p.m. (1228 GMT), Turkey's Disaster and Emergency Management said. At least 25 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. At least 10 people were injured in the village of Vrisa, Greek authorities said.

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

Earthquakes are frequent in Greece and Turkey, which are on active fault lines. Two devastating earthquakes hit northwestern Turkey in 1999, killing around 18,000 people. Experts in both countries said more aftershocks are to be expected.

Senior Greek government officials, seismologists and response teams are heading from the capital, Athens, to Lesbos to assess the damage.

Turkey's emergency management agency said there were no reports of casualties and has dispatched emergency and health teams, and 240 family tents to the area as a precaution.

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.

State-run radio in Greece said hundreds of residents left buildings and waited out in the street in Lesbos' capital, Mytilene. There was no reported damage or injuries at refugee camps on Lesbos or the nearby island of Chios. Both islands saw a major influx of migrants leaving from Turkey in 2015, and about 8,000 remain in limbo in Lesbos and Chios as they await news on their asylum applications. </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> 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> KOS, Greece - A powerful earthquake sent a building crashing down on tourists at a bar on the Greek holiday island of Kos early Friday, killing two and striking panic that reached the shores of nearby Turkey. Some 200 people were injured in the tumult.

Rescue authorities said that two men — a Turk and a Swede — died in the collapse at the White Corner Club when the 6.5-magnitude quake struck at about 1:30 a.m., rattling Greek islands and the Turkish Aegean coast in a region where seismic activity is common. The dead vacationers were not named.

Turkey's Foreign Ministry confirmed a Turkish citizen was killed in Kos and said a second national in serious condition was being evacuated to Athens for treatment. The country has also sent a vessel to the island to bring some 200 Turkish tourists home.

Hundreds of revelers were in or near the popular White Corner Club in the old town of Kos when the building partially collapsed.

Greek officials said at least five other people were seriously injured on Kos as tourists and local residents scrambled out of buildings, some even leaping from balconies. Five of the injured were being transported by helicopter to a hospital on the island of Crete.

"There was banging. There was shaking. The light was swinging, banging on the ceiling, crockery falling out of the cupboards, and pans were making noise," Christopher Hackland, a Scottish diving instructor, told the Associated Press.

"There was a lot of screaming and crying and hysterics coming from the hotel. It felt like being at a theme park with one of the illusions, an optical illusion where you feel like you're upside down."

Tens of thousands of tourists spent the night outdoors on Kos, many sleeping on sunbeds along beaches as a quake-related sea swell subsided. The quake damaged churches, an old mosque, and the port's 14th century castle, along with old buildings in the town.

In nearby Turkey, the quake caused cracks on walls of some buildings in the resort of Bodrum, flooded the lower floors of sea-front hotels and restaurants and sent moored boats crashing toward the shore.

Boat captain Metin Kestaneci, 40, told the private Dogan news agency that he was asleep on his vessel when the quake hit.

"There was first a noise and then a roar. Before I could ask 'what's happening?' my boat was dragged toward the shore. We found ourselves on the shore," Kestaneci said. "I've never experienced such a thing."

Turkish authorities said some 70 people were treated in hospitals in the resort of Bodrum for minor injuries, mostly sustained during panicked flight from their homes. But damage was light and they expect life will soon return to normal, encouraging tourists to continue their holidays.

Istanbul-based Kandilli earthquake research center said the quake caused a small 'tsunami' with waters sweeping between 10 and 100 meters (yards) in to the coast, recording more than 160 aftershocks.

Several Greek government ministers, as well as rescuers with sniffer dogs and structural engineers traveled to Kos overnight to coordinate the rescue effort. The British Foreign Office warned travelers of the possibility of aftershocks, urging them to follow the advice of the local authorities.

Authorities said there were no reported injuries of refugees and migrants at camps on the island.

A seafront road and parts of the island's main town were flooded for several hours, and the rising seawater even pushed a boat onto the main road and caused several cars to slam into each other. Ferry services were canceled until further inspection, with passengers rerouted to nearby islands.

Greek officials said the quake was 6.5-magnitude and the numerous aftershocks were weaker but still could put at risk the buildings that were already damaged. The epicenter was 6 miles (10 kilometers) south of Bodrum, Turkey, and 10 miles (16 kilometers) east-northeast of Kos with a depth of 6 miles (10 kilometers).

"The damage on the island (of Kos) is not widespread. The airport is working, and the road network and infrastructure are in good shape," Greek government spokesman Dimitris Tzanakopoulos said.

"The damage was at the bar and the old part of the town and we had the very unfortunate deaths of the two people."

The collapsed building dated to the 1930s, according to Kos Mayor Giorgos Kyritsis. "There are not many old buildings left on Kos. Nearly all the structures on the island have been built under the new codes to withstand earthquakes," the mayor said.

Rescuers were checking for trapped people inside houses across Kos at dozens of villages and other sites, but said the damage was confined to the island's main town. </s> KOS, Greece (AP) — A powerful earthquake sent a building crashing down on tourists at a bar on the Greek holiday island of Kos early Friday, killing two and striking panic that reached the shores of nearby Turkey. Some 200 people were injured in the tumult.

Rescue authorities said that two men — a Turk and a Swede — died in the collapse at the White Corner Club when the 6.5-magnitude quake struck at about 1:30 a.m., rattling Greek islands and the Turkish Aegean coast in a region where seismic activity is common. The dead vacationers were not named.

Turkey’s Foreign Ministry confirmed a Turkish citizen was killed in Kos and said a second national in serious condition was being evacuated to Athens for treatment. The country has also sent a vessel to the island to bring some 200 Turkish tourists home.

Hundreds of revelers were in or near the popular White Corner Club in the old town of Kos when the building partially collapsed.

Greek officials said at least five other people were seriously injured on Kos as tourists and local residents scrambled out of buildings, some even leaping from balconies. Five of the injured were being transported by helicopter to a hospital on the island of Crete.

“There was banging. There was shaking. The light was swinging, banging on the ceiling, crockery falling out of the cupboards, and pans were making noise,” Christopher Hackland, a Scottish diving instructor, told the Associated Press.

“There was a lot of screaming and crying and hysterics coming from the hotel. It felt like being at a theme park with one of the illusions, an optical illusion where you feel like you’re upside down.”

Tens of thousands of tourists spent the night outdoors on Kos, many sleeping on sunbeds along beaches as a quake-related sea swell subsided. The quake damaged churches, an old mosque, and the port’s 14th century castle, along with old buildings in the town.

In nearby Turkey, the quake caused cracks on walls of some buildings in the resort of Bodrum, flooded the lower floors of sea-front hotels and restaurants and sent moored boats crashing toward the shore.

Boat captain Metin Kestaneci, 40, told the private Dogan news agency that he was asleep on his vessel when the quake hit.

“There was first a noise and then a roar. Before I could ask ‘what’s happening?’ my boat was dragged toward the shore. We found ourselves on the shore,” Kestaneci said. “I’ve never experienced such a thing.”

Turkish authorities said some 70 people were treated in hospitals in the resort of Bodrum for minor injuries, mostly sustained during panicked flight from their homes. But damage was light and they expect life will soon return to normal, encouraging tourists to continue their holidays.

Istanbul-based Kandilli earthquake research center said the quake caused a small ‘tsunami’ with waters sweeping between 10 and 100 meters (yards) in to the coast, recording more than 160 aftershocks.

Several Greek government ministers, as well as rescuers with sniffer dogs and structural engineers traveled to Kos overnight to coordinate the rescue effort. The British Foreign Office warned travelers of the possibility of aftershocks, urging them to follow the advice of the local authorities.

Authorities said there were no reported injuries of refugees and migrants at camps on the island.

A seafront road and parts of the island’s main town were flooded for several hours, and the rising seawater even pushed a boat onto the main road and caused several cars to slam into each other. Ferry services were canceled until further inspection, with passengers rerouted to nearby islands.

Greek officials said the quake was 6.5-magnitude and the numerous aftershocks were weaker but still could put at risk the buildings that were already damaged. The epicenter was 6 miles (10 kilometers) south of Bodrum, Turkey, and 10 miles (16 kilometers) east-northeast of Kos with a depth of 6 miles (10 kilometers).

“The damage on the island (of Kos) is not widespread. The airport is working, and the road network and infrastructure are in good shape,” Greek government spokesman Dimitris Tzanakopoulos said.

“The damage was at the bar and the old part of the town and we had the very unfortunate deaths of the two people.”

The collapsed building dated to the 1930s, according to Kos Mayor Giorgos Kyritsis. “There are not many old buildings left on Kos. Nearly all the structures on the island have been built under the new codes to withstand earthquakes,” the mayor said.

Rescuers were checking for trapped people inside houses across Kos at dozens of villages and other sites, but said the damage was confined to the island’s main town.

Gatopoulos reported from Athens, Greece; Wieting reported from Bitez, Turkey. Associated Press journalists Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Elena Becatoros in Saranda, Albania; and Ron DePasquale and Stephanie Siek in New York contributed.

Copyright © 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed. </s> KOS, Greece (AP) — A powerful earthquake sent a building crashing down on tourists at a bar on the Greek holiday island of Kos early Friday, killing two and striking panic that reached the shores of nearby Turkey. Some 200 people were injured in the tumult.

Rescue authorities said that two men — a Turk and a Swede — died in the collapse at the White Corner Club when the 6.5-magnitude quake struck at about 1:30 a.m., rattling Greek islands and the Turkish Aegean coast in a region where seismic activity is common. The dead vacationers were not named.

Turkey’s Foreign Ministry confirmed a Turkish citizen was killed in Kos and said a second national in serious condition was being evacuated to Athens for treatment. The country has also sent a vessel to the island to bring some 200 Turkish tourists home.

Hundreds of revelers were in or near the popular White Corner Club in the old town of Kos when the building partially collapsed.

Greek officials said at least five other people were seriously injured on Kos as tourists and local residents scrambled out of buildings, some even leaping from balconies. Five of the injured were being transported by helicopter to a hospital on the island of Crete.

“There was banging. There was shaking. The light was swinging, banging on the ceiling, crockery falling out of the cupboards, and pans were making noise,” Christopher Hackland, a Scottish diving instructor, told the Associated Press.

“There was a lot of screaming and crying and hysterics coming from the hotel. It felt like being at a theme park with one of the illusions, an optical illusion where you feel like you’re upside down.”

Tens of thousands of tourists spent the night outdoors on Kos, many sleeping on sunbeds along beaches as a quake-related sea swell subsided. The quake damaged churches, an old mosque, and the port’s 14th century castle, along with old buildings in the town.

In nearby Turkey, the quake caused cracks on walls of some buildings in the resort of Bodrum, flooded the lower floors of sea-front hotels and restaurants and sent moored boats crashing toward the shore.

Boat captain Metin Kestaneci, 40, told the private Dogan news agency that he was asleep on his vessel when the quake hit.

“There was first a noise and then a roar. Before I could ask ‘what’s happening?’ my boat was dragged toward the shore. We found ourselves on the shore,” Kestaneci said. “I’ve never experienced such a thing.”

Turkish authorities said some 70 people were treated in hospitals in the resort of Bodrum for minor injuries, mostly sustained during panicked flight from their homes. But damage was light and they expect life will soon return to normal, encouraging tourists to continue their holidays.

Istanbul-based Kandilli earthquake research center said the quake caused a small ‘tsunami’ with waters sweeping between 10 and 100 meters (yards) in to the coast, recording more than 160 aftershocks.

Several Greek government ministers, as well as rescuers with sniffer dogs and structural engineers traveled to Kos overnight to coordinate the rescue effort. The British Foreign Office warned travelers of the possibility of aftershocks, urging them to follow the advice of the local authorities.

Authorities said there were no reported injuries of refugees and migrants at camps on the island.

A seafront road and parts of the island’s main town were flooded for several hours, and the rising seawater even pushed a boat onto the main road and caused several cars to slam into each other. Ferry services were canceled until further inspection, with passengers rerouted to nearby islands.

Greek officials said the quake was 6.5-magnitude and the numerous aftershocks were weaker but still could put at risk the buildings that were already damaged. The epicenter was 6 miles (10 kilometers) south of Bodrum, Turkey, and 10 miles (16 kilometers) east-northeast of Kos with a depth of 6 miles (10 kilometers).

“The damage on the island (of Kos) is not widespread. The airport is working, and the road network and infrastructure are in good shape,” Greek government spokesman Dimitris Tzanakopoulos said.

“The damage was at the bar and the old part of the town and we had the very unfortunate deaths of the two people.”

The collapsed building dated to the 1930s, according to Kos Mayor Giorgos Kyritsis. “There are not many old buildings left on Kos. Nearly all the structures on the island have been built under the new codes to withstand earthquakes,” the mayor said.

Rescuers were checking for trapped people inside houses across Kos at dozens of villages and other sites, but said the damage was confined to the island’s main town.

Gatopoulos reported from Athens, Greece; Wieting reported from Bitez, Turkey. Associated Press journalists Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Elena Becatoros in Saranda, Albania; and Ron DePasquale and Stephanie Siek in New York contributed.
An earthquake of 6.3 magnitude shakes the Aegean Sea, causing one death. Many houses were damaged in Plomari, Greece, and some collapsed.