ISTANBUL. – A magnitude 3.8 earthquake was registered in Istanbul on Friday at 11:17am. 

The tremor’s epicenter was located in the city’s Buyukcekmece district and seven kilometers beneath the surface, NTV News Agency of Turkey reports. The quake caused panic among the residents. 

Turkey’s Emergency Department Chief Murat Nurlu made a statement, in this connection, and asked the people to remain calm. He stated that the seismic activity was neither an initial tremor nor an aftershock and that there is no reason to be concerned.