No one was reported buried under the rubble in the town of Simav, the epicenter of the quake, but one man died after jumping out of a window in panic while an 18-year-old high school student was killed when he was hit by a falling piece of stone as he stood outside his home, the Anatolia news agency said. An elderly woman died of a heart attack in another town, Inegol, shortly after the quake rocked the region late Thursday.
Environment Minister Veysel Eroglu blamed shoddy construction for the partial collapse of some buildings in the area. The quake cracked many buildings, including hostels, sending terrified residents into the streets and triggering an exodus by university students.
Live coverage by NTV television Friday showed students screaming and running away from a building at the city’s bus terminal as an aftershock — the latest of hundreds — jolted the area.
At least two cars were buried under the debris of an apartment building and the streets were littered with window glass, television footage showed.
The Red Crescent, the Muslim equivalent of the Red Cross, set up soup kitchens to feed thousands of people who spent the night in their cars or in the streets. Turkish soldiers were helping rescue workers to set up a small tent city to provide temporary shelter to the homeless.
