Second earthquake in one month hits Yalova, felt in Istanbul

A 4.5-magnitude earthquake rocked Yalova, a province south of Istanbul, yesterday morning. No casualties or damage were reported in the earthquake that was felt as far as Istanbul, which is separated from Yalova by the Marmara Sea. Tremors followed a 4.1-magnitude earthquake on Nov. 30.

Nine aftershocks of lesser magnitude were recorded in the province. Authorities announced that the epicenter of the earthquake that occurred at 9:34 local time was in Çınarcık, a sleepy coastal town popular among pensioners, which was also home to November's quake. Its depth was recorded as about 7 kilometers.

Kandilli Observatory Earthquake Research Institute in Istanbul, the top seismology institute in the country, announced that it was "a shallow earthquake." A statement by the institute said Yalova is located in the Northern Anatolia Fault Zone, a major fault line in the earthquake-prone country. The statement also said the region is home to many small and big fault plates and warned the public about future earthquakes, calling on them to be alert against earthquake risk and to reside in buildings resistant to earthquakes.

Turkey is among the world's most seismically active countries as it is situated on a number of active fault lines. In the latest earthquake-related disaster, more than 600 people died in October 2011 in the eastern province of Van after a 7.2 magnitude quake and powerful aftershocks. The most potentially devastating fault line in Turkey is the Northern Anatolia Fault (NAF), where the Anatolian and Eurasian plates meet.