By Aziz Akyavas and Saphora Smith - NBC News
At least six people died and more than 200 were injured in a strong earthquake measuring 7 on the Richter scale that struck Turkey and Greece on Friday.
Images posted on social media showed a building in the Turkish coastal city of Izmir completely collapsed with people climbing through the rubble.
Video posted on Twitter appeared to show debris strewn across a central Izmir boulevard.
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It was unclear how many people were trapped under the structure, the city's mayor, Tunç Soyer, told NBC News.
Building collapsed by the earthquake that shook the Turkish city of Izmir on Friday.
Getty Images
Soyer explained that at least 20 buildings collapsed in that city, which is the third largest in Turkey after Istanbul and the capital, Ankara.
Six people died in Turkey, including one who drowned, and 202 were injured, according to the Presidency of Emergency and Disaster Management.
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Turkey's Health Minister Fahrettin Koca tweeted that about 40 ambulances, 35 emergency rescue teams and two helicopters were at the scene.
"We are with the people of Izmir," he added.
As a result of the earthquake, there were large waves in both countries that caused flooding in parts of the coast and a
tsunami
warning
.
A video posted by the Turkish state agency Anadolu showed furniture under the floodwaters of Izmir's flooded streets.
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Residents of Samos, a Greek island with a population of about 45,000, were also urged to stay away from coastal areas, Eftyhmios Lekkas, head of the Greek organization for anti-seismic planning, told Greek television Skai TV.
"It was a very big earthquake, it is difficult to have a bigger one," he explained.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis tweeted on Friday that he had called Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to offer his condolences.
"Whatever our differences, these are times when our people need to be united," he wrote.
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For his part, Erdogan tweeted early Friday that "with all the media in our state, we support our citizens affected by the earthquake."
The Turkish Interior Ministry reported that search, rescue and first aid teams were dispatched to the region immediately.
A building collapsed in the earthquake that hit the city of Izmir, Turkey, this Friday. Getty Images
The Turkish Red Crescent that its disaster teams had also taken action after the earthquake.
The US Geological Survey said the earthquake's epicenter was 20.8 miles (33.5 km) off the coast of Turkey and at a depth of 6.2 miles (10 km).
