At least seven people were killed and 312 were hurt yesterday when the most powerful aftershock to hit Turkey, since the massive earthquake of August 17th, struck the already devastated north-western area of the country.
Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit, announcing four deaths, told reporters in Ankara that most of them had occurred in Kocaeli province whose capital, Izmit, was near the epicentre of the August earthquake.
The Anatolia news agency later increased the death toll in Kocaeli to five people, including a young woman who died in hospital after receiving injuries when she jumped out of a second floor. In Adapazari, a 67-year-old person died of a heart attack.
The Kandilli Observatory Seismological Center in Istanbul measured the tremor at 2.55 p.m. (local time) at 5.8 on the Richter scale, while the Seismological Observatory in Strasbourg, France, had it at 6.1.
The aftershock collapsed at least 23 already damaged buildings and about 21 people were believed trapped. There were fears the death toll could mount as various reports spoke of deaths elsewhere.
There was widespread panic as the strong tremor snapped the nerves of survivors already trying to cope with the widespread loss of life and property of last month's quake, in addition to harsh living conditions and nonstop aftershocks. Experts warned that aftershocks could last for up to a year.
Telephone lines were jammed in the quake area. The panic was particularly bad in Yalova, where frightened parents rushed to collect scared, weeping and confused children from schools that had just reopened earlier in the day. The parents had been highly critical of the decision to resume schooling with the rest of the country and Mr Ecevit immediately ordered the schools in the stricken zones closed indefinitely.
Helena Smith adds from Athens:
The Greek Government says it will increase emergency aid to ease the suffering of an estimated 100,000 people made homeless by last week's earthquake in Athens. The measures were announced yesterday as the death toll rose to 122 and rescue workers vowed to continue efforts to find 18 people still buried beneath the rubble of collapsed buildings. The emergency aid will include grants and loans to reconstruct damaged homes in more than 20 of the capital's suburbs now declared disaster zones.
Tent cities have been set up in most of Athens's poorest suburbs - the areas hardest hit. Many now resemble refugee camps, with tens of thousands battling sordid conditions out in the open. There were scenes of chaos yesterday as bedraggled victims queued outside emergency centres for food and financial assistance. Government officials said they feared it could "take years" to repair the damage wrought by the disaster.