A strong earthquake with a magnitude of 5.9 on the Richter scale struck at 02:17 local time in the sea area between Rhodes and Turkey.

According to regional media, the tremor was intense, prompting both residents and tourists to rush out of hotels and homes in fear.

Ari Kasapi, head of the Albanian community in Rhodes, told People on Euronews Albania that the earthquake sparked panic and tsunami fears due to its proximity to the island.

“We felt it strongly because we were all asleep. The epicenter was just 7 kilometers from Rhodes. Our phones initially showed a magnitude of 6.7, while the Athens center later reported it as 5.9. There have been smaller quakes recently, but this time we’ve had fires, floods, and now this earthquake.

I run a business selling tourist accessories—fortunately, there was no damage on my end, but around 10 old houses were affected. The real panic was in the large hotels, where people feared a tsunami,” he said.

Greece reported no injuries. However, in Turkey, a 14-year-old girl died from a panic attack during the earthquake, and 69 others were injured—many of them reportedly jumped from heights in fear.