Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya assured that no one died in the earthquake that struck at 10:48 p.m. local time on Monday in the province of Balıkesir, at a depth of 5.9 kilometers and with its epicenter in the municipality of Sindirgi, population 32,000.

The tremor, which was also felt in Istanbul, a city located about 200 kilometers further northeast, and in other neighboring provinces, sparked panic among the population, prompting some to jump out of windows or flee in haste.

Teams from the Provincial Directorate of Environment, Urban Development, and Climate Change, dispatched to the region, continue to assess the damage, while debris removal has begun.

Sindirgi was already the epicenter of a magnitude 6.1 earthquake on August 10, which caused one death, 50 injuries, and damage to 16 buildings.

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