A magnitude 5.3 earthquake jolted western Turkey's Gökçeada on Sunday.
According to Turkey's Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD), the epicenter of the quake was around 125 kilometers (78 miles) from the island, which is a district of the western province of Çanakkale.
The earthquake, which occurred at 2:48 p.m. local time, did not cause any damage or casualties, according to initial reports. Gökçeada Governor Serhat Doğan told Anadolu Agency (AA) that they felt the tremors "only slightly."
Turkey sits on several fault lines, with most of the country located on the Anatolian tectonic plate, which sits between two major plates, the Eurasian and African, and a minor one, the Arabian.
As the larger African and Arabian plates shift, Turkey is being literally squeezed, while the Eurasian plate impedes any northward movement.
Turkey went through a shaky period last year, experiencing an average of three earthquakes an hour. Given that the risk of more consequential earthquakes remains, the country strives to protect its buildings as a precaution in the event of a "big one."
Statistics show that a total of 23,753 earthquakes were recorded over the course of the last year. In other words, around 65 earthquakes of ranging magnitudes occurred in a day on average in the country.
Earthquakes are monitored by the 1,143 seismic observation stations run by AFAD across the country, though some universities also operate their own stations.
