A woman from Braintree has described the moment she clung to her bed and watched her wardrobe move across the floor during an earthquake in Turkey. 

Julie and Neil Jesse, both 70, had been in Turunc, close to Bodrum, for four weeks when the 6.7 magnitude earthquake struck at 1.31am (10.31pm GMT Thursday). 

Mrs Jesse, who will remain in Turkey for three more weeks, said: "We were all in bed and I was woken up by a massive shaking of me and my bed.

"At first I thought I was still asleep then came to and realised it was an earthquake.

“It seemed to go on for ages but only lasted about a minute.

“Then a second shock came, I literally held onto the side of the bed until it finished.

“The things on my bedside cabinet rattled and my wardrobe moved across the floor."

After the first wave of the earthquake, which hit 12km north-east of Kos, Mrs Jesse got out of bed and found her husband outside with a flashlight. 

She said: “I was very scared and felt panicky but the owners of the complex were quickly on scene and allayed our fears that nothing structural had occurred.

“A lot of Turkish people came out into the street and were just walking around for about an hour after it happened.

“We had a lot of aftershocks for the rest of the night so didn't really get much sleep. I was scared another big one would hit but it is all calm again now."

Brentwood Live:

Mrs Jesse opted to sleep inside, although the chefs and waiters all slept outside as it is believed to be the safest place during an earthquake. 

She added: "Perhaps we should have followed their example but hopefully won't have to go through that again.

“It was very scary for us as British tourists as we have never experienced anything like this, it felt like I was in a film."

Mrs Jesse described the experience as "surreal" and explained how quiet it was during the middle of the night, with lots of people walking around. 

She told the Times that several bars in the village lost their stock and one or two supermarkets found goods on the floor.

Mrs Jesse added: “It is the talking point of the village today of course.

“There is still some activity happening off Bodrum this morning in the Aegean Sea apparently.

"My daughter and family are coming out to join us next week and she has Facetimed me already today to see if we ok."