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Turkey earthquake kills three [map]

An earthquake that shook northwest Turkey last night killed at least three people and injured nearly 100.


The 5.9-magnitude quake struck at 11.15 pm local time and was centred in the town of Simav.


The tremor was felt as far as Istanbul, the Aegean tourist city of Izmir, the northwestern city of Bursa, and the city of Edirne, close to the Greek and Bulgarian borders.


There were no immediate reports of damage in the ancient city of Epheseus, which lies just outside Selcuk, about 55 miles south of Izmir.


The quake was followed by about 50 aftershocks, the strongest with a magnitude of 4.6. Local authorities warned of more aftershocks in the coming days.


Most of Simav was without electricity and telephone lines were down, reports said.


Major geological fault lines cross Turkey and small earthquakes are a near-daily occurrence. Two large quakes in 1999 killed more than 20,000 people in the northwest of the country.


Where the quake struck


 



View Turkey earthquake – May 2011 in a larger map

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