ALERT: Greece- 6.7 Magnitude Earthquake Near Greek Island of Kos (July 21, 2017)

July 21, 2017

A 6.7 magnitude earthquake and aftershocks have rocked the Greek island of Kos, as well as the Turkish resort area of Bodrum. There are reports of building damage, as well as injuries and two confirmed deaths.

According to Reuters:

A powerful earthquake killed two people on the Greek holiday island of Kos in the early hours of Friday, also causing disruption in the Turkish tourist hub of Bodrum.

Around 200 people were injured, including tourists of various nationalities. Many of Kos’s tourists spent the night in the open as a precaution, hotel owners said.

The U.S. Geological Survey put the quake at magnitude 6.7 and located the epicenter 10 km (6 miles) SSE of the Turkish summer tourist hub of Bodrum, and about 16 km ENE of Kos’s main port.

Data from Turkey’s disaster and emergency management authority, AFAD, which put the quake at magnitude 6.3, showed that more than 40 aftershocks were felt in Turkey and Greece, in the immediate aftermath of the quake, with some up to magnitude 4.6.

“There are about 200,000 tourists on the island, we are at the peak season. Our first reaction was to calm the tourists, following basic rules and evacuating hotel buildings,” Svynou said, adding that there had been no injuries at the hotel.

Kos’s airport remained operational and Greek Deputy Shipping Minister Nektarios Santorinios flew there. But he said the port was out of action.

“Passengers on ferries have been rerouted to the islands of Nisyros and Kalymnos,” he told Greek SKAI

The UK’s Guardian is reporting:

Two people were killed and five seriously injured on the Greek island of Kos after an earthquake hit tourist destinations around the Aegean sea in the early hours of Friday.

The epicentre was just 6 miles south of the Turkish resort of Bodrum and 10 miles from Kos.

The two dead on Kos were identified as Turkish and Swedish nationals and were killed when the ceiling of a bar in the centre of Kos town collapsed. Five other people in the bar – two Swedes, two Greeks and one Norwegian – were seriously injured and flown to Crete for medical treatment. One is reported to have suffered extensive leg injuries.

Kos, in the Dodecanese archipelago, and the Turkish towns of Bodrum and Datça are all tourist destinations.

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