One person was killed and dozens were injured in a 6.1-magnitude earthquake that shook the town of Sindirgi in western Turkey.

This was reported by the Turkish Disaster Management Agency (AFAD), AFP reported.

The tremor was felt in several cities in the western part of the country, including Istanbul and the tourist center of Izmir.

"An 81-year-old man died shortly after being rescued from the rubble," Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said in Sindirgi, the epicenter of the earthquake.

Another 29 people were injured, but not seriously, he added.

The earthquake destroyed 16 buildings in Sindiğir and the surrounding area, four of which were inhabited, including a three-story building in the city center.

Several people were pulled alive from the rubble of the three-story building, where six people lived. The deceased was also buried there before being freed.

Earlier, Mayor Serkan Sak told Turkish private channel NTV: "Four people have been rescued from the rubble. Efforts to extract two others are continuing."

About 319 rescuers were deployed to the affected area, AFAD said.

The earthquake struck at 7:53 p.m. About 20 aftershocks with magnitudes between 3.5 and 4.6 were recorded, according to AFAD.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed his condolences to all those affected by the earthquake and said he would closely monitor its aftermath.

Turkey is crossed by several geological fault lines that have caused disasters in the country in the past.

An earthquake in February 2023 in the southwestern part of the country killed at least 53,000 people and devastated Antakya, the site of the ancient city of Antioch.

More recently, in early July, a 5.8-magnitude quake in the same region caused one death and injured 69 people. | BGNES