At least five die in eastern Turkey quake

March 8th, 2010 - 11:16 am ICT by BNO News  

ANKARA (BNO NEWS) — At least five people were killed when a strong earthquake struck eastern Turkey on early Monday, seismologists and officials said.

The Kandilli Earthquake Research Institute and Observatory said the earthquake had a preliminary magnitude of 6.0 and was centered about 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) deep, making it an extremely shallow tremor. The epicenter was located about 21 kilometers (13 miles) south-southeast of the city of Elazig. It happened at 4.32 a.m. local time

The extend of the damage and casualties were not immediately clear, but a local official told CNN Turk that at least five people were killed in the town of Okcular. He said at least one child remains trapped under the rubble. The channel said the earthquake, which was unusually powerful for the region, was widely felt.

A series of small aftershocks were felt in the region, and are expected to continue for days or weeks. The largest had a preliminary magnitude of 4.1.

No tsunami warnings were issued because the epicenter of the earthquake was located on land, and the magnitude would have been too low to spark a tsunami threat.

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