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Magnitude 4.7 Quake Hits Eastern Turkey

FILE: People try to warm up around a stove outside their collapsed house after an earthquake hit villages in Baskale town in Van province, Turkey, at the border with Iran, Sunday, Feb. 23, 2020. AP
FILE: People try to warm up around a stove outside their collapsed house after an earthquake hit villages in Baskale town in Van province, Turkey, at the border with Iran, Sunday, Feb. 23, 2020. AP
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Magnitude 4.7 Quake Hits Eastern Turkey

FILE: People try to warm up around a stove outside their collapsed house after an earthquake hit villages in Baskale town in Van province, Turkey, at the border with Iran, Sunday, Feb. 23, 2020. AP
FILE: People try to warm up around a stove outside their collapsed house after an earthquake hit villages in Baskale town in Van province, Turkey, at the border with Iran, Sunday, Feb. 23, 2020. AP

An earthquake with a 4.7 magnitude shook Malatya province in eastern Turkey on Friday, sending people pouring out into the streets in fear.

There was however, no immediate report of any damage or casualties, according to The Associated Press.

The quake, which was centered in the town of Puturge, struck at 11:27 a.m. (0827 GMT), Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Directorate said. It was felt in several neighboring provinces.

Malatya’s Gov. Aydin Barus told the state-run Anadolu Agency that his office had not received any “negative reports” concerning possible damage or injuries.

Several people rushed out of their homes or workplaces in fear that buildings might topple, the agency reported.

Turkey sits on top of major fault lines and earthquakes are frequent.

The country was hit by two strong tremors this year — one that hit the western port city of Izmir last month, killing 114 people and one that struck Elazig province, which neighbors Malatya, killing 41 people.

At least 17,000 people died in a powerful earthquake in northwest Turkey in 1999.

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Greece Tackles Last of Wildfire Near Athens, Assesses Damage

A drone view shows smoke rising in a charred forest area following a wildfire, in the village of Varnavas, Greece, August 13, 2024. REUTERS/Fedja Grulovic
A drone view shows smoke rising in a charred forest area following a wildfire, in the village of Varnavas, Greece, August 13, 2024. REUTERS/Fedja Grulovic
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Greece Tackles Last of Wildfire Near Athens, Assesses Damage

A drone view shows smoke rising in a charred forest area following a wildfire, in the village of Varnavas, Greece, August 13, 2024. REUTERS/Fedja Grulovic
A drone view shows smoke rising in a charred forest area following a wildfire, in the village of Varnavas, Greece, August 13, 2024. REUTERS/Fedja Grulovic

Firefighters battled on Wednesday to extinguish the remnants of a wildfire near Athens that killed a woman, torched buildings, devoured woodland and forced thousands of people to flee their homes.
Most of the fronts had eased three days after the inferno had first taken hold, but officials warned against complacency, said Reuters.
"The fire is still in progress. It has not been brought under control yet," a fire brigade official said.
State inspectors started assessing damaged buildings as fire-stricken residents returned to their scorched properties, hoping to find some belongings amidst the debris.
Hundreds of firefighters assisted by 12 aircraft have been tackling the blaze since Sunday as it barrelled from a forest off the town of Varnavas, 35 km (22 miles) from the capital, into Athens' northern suburbs.
Greece's National Observatory said the fire had damaged around 10,000 hectares (24,710 acres) of land. The cause of the blaze has not yet been determined.
Greece is on high fire alert until Thursday, with temperatures forecast to hit 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) raising concern about possible flare ups.
Wildfires have been a common feature of Greek summers for years, but climate change has brought hotter weather and less rain, heightening the risk.
The country, which has recently tightened penalties for arson, has dealt with over 3,500 fires since May, a nearly 50% increase from the same period in 2023 when it recorded 2,300 blazes, government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis said.
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis chaired a meeting about the latest blaze on Tuesday evening.
"We are trying to improve every year. But conditions are only becoming tougher," he told ministers according to a government official.
Sunday's fire broke rapidly across several fronts reaching within hours the seaside area of Nea Makri, the historic town of Marathon and suburbs on the slopes of Mount of Penteli, which is considered one of Athens' last green lungs.
A woman was found dead inside a burned local business in the suburb of Vrilissia, about 10 km from central Athens, on Monday.
The government has announced compensation and relief measures for those impacted by the disaster.
Some experts said the fire had managed to spread so fast because of a phenomenon called spotting, where wind whirls transfer burning matter across long distances. That led to the constant creation of new fronts which later merged.