Study Group in Turkey Unhurt by Earthquake

A Granada Hills Bible study group arrived in Istanbul, Turkey, just hours before a massive earthquake struck early Tuesday morning, killing more than 150 people in that city alone.

No one in the group from St. Euphrasia Catholic Church was injured, tour leader Bill Creasy said by telephone Tuesday from Hotel Mercure in Istanbul. The tour group includes 42 adults and two children.

“We were just getting ready for bed when it happened,” Creasy said. The group had flown into Istanbul, the first stop on a 13-day tour, about 1 a.m. Tuesday and were taken to the hotel in the downtown area.

The quake struck about 3 a.m.

“There was a thumping noise and the building started to sway,” said Creasy, who lives in Westwood. “I knew just what it was as soon as it started. It felt very much like the Northridge earthquake.”

The shaking continued for about 45 seconds, he said. The hotel lost electricity, gas and water services, but an auxiliary generator powered hallway lights, allowing members of the group to check on each other.

Creasy had no idea how strong the earthquake had been or the extent of damage until he heard televised news reports later that morning.

“The damage in the city seems to have been very localized,” he said. “Near us, there was almost no damage we could see.”

Several collapsed chimneys were the only signs of damage they observed as they walked around the neighborhood, Creasy said.

The group toured the city Tuesday as planned. Again, he said, they saw little damage, although portions of walls in the old city had fallen.

“Those walls had been built 2,000 years ago,” Creasy said, “but the parts that collapsed had been rebuilt a while ago by UNESCO [the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization].

“I guess they don’t make them like they used to.”

The sites the group specifically set out to visit--including the 6th century Hagia Sophia Church and the 17th century Blue Mosque--seemed undamaged, he said. “Most of the stores and offices were closed, probably because there was no electricity.”

Creasy, who is on the English department faculty at UCLA, teaches a seven-year course at St. Euphrasia in Granada Hills that examines the entire Bible, verse by verse.

During year three, members of the study group visit Israel and other parts of the Middle East. In year five, they go to Turkey and Greece to follow the journeys of St. Paul.

The group’s next stop is northern Greece.

The tour will continue as planned, Creasy said, ending Aug. 27 with the group’s arrival back in Los Angeles.