A huge earthquake has struck a popular tourist destination for Brits as “terrified” locals were seen fleeing for safety.
The magnitude 6.2 tremor has shaken Istanbul, Turkey’s emergency management agency confirmed. Buildings shook and tourists and locals alike were seen visibly distressed by the quake in alarming footage posted online.
A news anchor could be seen looking frightened as the studio of CNN Turkey rocked live on air during the earthquake.
One local said the “terrifying” quake has triggered a number of aftershocks, writing on X: “It was the strongest I’ve ever felt and honestly it was terrifying. Even now there are still small aftershocks. Things keep shaking every now and then. Stay safe everyone.”
“Just felt my building shake for like 30 seconds. Earthquake in Istanbul. I’m on the 17th floor”, said another horrified resident. The earthquake had a magnitude of 6.2 and a shallow depth of 10 kilometres, according to the United States Geological Survey.
One eyewitness added: “Earthquake struck Istanbul today at 12:40pm, I was in Hotel Istanbul 5th Floor. Building was dancing for some seconds.” One startled resident said: “Just experienced an earthquake in Istanbul, luckily we are ok but that sh*t was scary asf.”
Its epicentre was some 40 kilometres (25 miles) southwest of Istanbul in the Sea of Marmara. It was felt in several neighbouring regions. There are no reported injuries at this time.
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At least 151 people have been injured after jumping from high buildings due to panic over the earthquake, according to Istanbul’s governor’s office.
There have been no recorded casualties, and no residential buildings have collapsed.
Although an abandoned building in the Fatih district partially collapased after a series of earthquakes, there were no casualties.
A vet, who was in the middle of an operation on cat when the earthquake hit, remarkably finished the job in the boot of a car, according to local media.
The post on X reads: “A veterinarian who was caught in an earthquake while operating on a cat in Istanbul left the building with the cat. He continued the surgery in the trunk of a car.”
İstanbul’da bir kediyi ameliyat ettiği sırada depreme yakalanan veteriner, kediyle beraber binadan dışarı çıktı. Ameliyata bir otomobilin bagajında devam ettihttps://t.co/IUYeOVsi9V pic.twitter.com/00W4AanLB0
Cihan Boztepe, 40, was one of those who hurriedly fled to the streets with his family in order to avoid a potential collapse.
He told AP: “At first we were shaken, then it stopped, then we were shaken again. My children were a little scared, but I wasn’t.
“We quickly gathered our things and went down to a safe place. If it were up to me, we would have already returned home.”
Leyla Ucar, a personal trainer, said she was exercising with her student on the 20th floor of a building when they felt intense shaking.
“We shook incredibly. It threw us around, we couldn’t understand what was happening, we didn’t think of an earthquake at first because of the shock of the event,” she said.
“It was very scary.”
A man was seen jumping from his building in panic following the earthquake.
Mayor Mehmet Ergun Turan, of the historic Fatih district that houses the famed Blue Mosque and the Hagia Sophia, told local media one person was injured from jumping from a window.
He was seen being helped up by locals and taken to a nearby hospital.
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More Footage: A M5.5 earthquake struck 25 km west of Bağcılar, Turkey, on April 23, 2025, at 13:02 local time. Felt widely in Istanbul. #deprem #Sismo
One person was injured when he jumped down during the earthquake in Bahçelievler. https://t.co/FcgZMkRx0j pic.twitter.com/OJmpCQLKAs
An abandoned building in the Fatih district collapses partly after a 6.2 magnitude earthquake jolts Istanbul.
Local residents were told to evacuate nearby buildings, with authorities cordoning off the area.
Leading Turkish football side Fenerbahce have expressed their well wishes to people caught up in this morning’s monster earthquake.
The Süper Lig side, managed by ex-Chelsea, Manchester United and Tottenham manager Jose Mourinho, wrote on X: “We hope there will be no loss of life or property following the earthquake that occurred in the Marmara Sea and was felt in Istanbul and the surrounding provinces.
“We convey our get well wishes to all our citizens.”
Marmara Denizi’nde meydana gelen İstanbul ve çevre illerde de hissedilen deprem sonrası can ve mal kaybının olmamasını temenni ediyor; tüm vatandaşlarımıza geçmiş olsun dileklerimizi iletiyoruz.
Authorities in Istanbul have urged people to avoid driving their cars following this morning’s tremors.
Residents have been told not to get behind the wheel unless it is “absolutely necessary”, amid fears of falling debris.
Turkey is crossed by two major fault lines, and earthquakes are frequent.
A magnitude 7.8 earthquake on February 6, 2023, and a second powerful tremor hours later, destroyed or damaged hundreds of thousands of buildings in 11 southern and southeastern provinces, leaving more than 53,000 people dead. Another 6,000 people were killed in the northern parts of neighbouring Syria.
Istanbul was not impacted by that earthquake, but the devastation heightened fears of a similar quake, with experts citing the city’s proximity to fault lines.
In a bid to prevent damage from any future quake, the national government and local administrations started urban reconstruction projects to fortify buildings at risk and launched campaigns to demolish buildings at risk of collapse.
A TV presenter almost burst into tears in terror as a massive earthquake rattled the studio in Istanbul, Turkey.
The 6.2 magnitude earthquake struck near Turkey’s largest city Istanbul and had a depth of about 6.2 miles, according the the German Research Centre.
The alarming moment the tremor struck was captured during a discussion segment on CNN Turk.
In the viral clip, anchor Meltem Bozbeyoglu was seen looking at notes on her desk as the earthquake rattled the studio.
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Many children were off school in Turkey due to a public holiday. Families were seen evacuting the city centre and local events have been axed by local authorities
Parents were seen hugging their children and holding onto loved ones after evacuating buildings in panic following a powerful 6.2 magnitude earthquake.
The quake struck at 12:49 p.m. during a public holiday when many children were out of school and celebrating in the streets. The quake forced authorities in Istanbul to cancel the events.
Chefs were also spotted making calls to their family and friends after evacuating their workplace.
This is the shocking moment a home shakes violently after the 6.2 earthquake in Istanbul, Turkey. The television and lights could be seen moving up and down.
6.2 Earthquake in Istanbul, Turkey
All networks are currently down, people are scared to go back to their homes
There were 6 stronger aftershocks. pic.twitter.com/dnco5ndj3Z
Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality said there were no “serious cases” in the earthquake in a statement made on its social media accounts.
Kemal Cebi, the mayor of Kucukcekmece district in western Istanbul, told local broadcaster NTV that there were “no negative developments yet” but he reported that there were traffic jams and that many buildings were already at risk due to the density of the area.
One tourist was in Hotel Istanbul when their building started to shake.
One user said: “Earthquake struck Istanbul today at 12:40pm, I was in Hotel Istanbul 5th Floor. Building was dancing for some seconds.”
Another startled resident added: “Just experienced an earthquake in Istanbul, luckily we are ok but that sh*t was scary asf.”
An earthquake shook #Istanbul a short while ago. pic.twitter.com/Q92Xfy5Y0u
One terrified resident, who was on the 17th floor, took to social media to say they felt their floor shake after the earthquake.
“Just felt my building shake for like 30 seconds. Earthquake in Istanbul. I’m on the 17th floor”, said one terrified resident. According to Turkey’s emergency management agency, the epicentre was just off the Silivri, a coastal area known for its seismic activity.
6.2 EARTHQUAKE SHAKES ISTANBUL
A 6.2 magnitude earthquake hit near Istanbul, centered in the Sea of Marmara.
It gave the city a good shake, but no injuries or damage have been reported so far.
Turkey’s emergency agency is keeping an eye on things.
Source: Associated… pic.twitter.com/z7qNyNZuz9
The earthquake was felt across many regions, as residents were seen fleeing Istanbul town centre.
In footage posted to X, panicked crowds were seen sprinting out of buildings along a busy street as an alarm blared in the background.
It was followed by several aftershocks, including one measuring 5.3. The disaster and emergency management agency urged residents to stay away from buildings.
A news anchor could be seen looking frightened as the studio of CNN Turkey rocked live on air during the earthquake.
They were in the middle of a broadcast when the 6.2 magnitude earthquake struck. The host could be seen visibly shaking.
Many people rushed out of homes in panic, while the broadcast was suspended.
A huge 6.2 magnitude earthquake has struck a tourist-packed city in Turkey, causing buildings to shake. The quake hit near Istanbul, centered in the Sea of Marmara.
“Just felt my building shake for like 30 seconds. Earthquake in Istanbul. I’m on the 17th floor”, said one terrified resident. According to Turkey’s emergency management agency, the epicentre was just off the Silivri, a coastal area known for its seismic activity.
Read more here
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