5.4 magnitude earthquake hits eastern Turkey

A 5.4 magnitude earthquake rattled the province of Elazig in eastern Turkey on Thursday, local Today' s Zaman reported on its website.

Initial reports said the quake did not cause any deaths or serious damage. Bogazici University's Kandilli Observatory and Earthquake Research Institute said the epicenter of the quake, which occurred at 10:34 a.m. (0734 GMT), was at a depth of 6.1 km, Xinhua reported.

The quake caused panic among Elazig residents who rushed to the streets. Tremor was also felt in neighboring provinces of Malatya, Bingol, Diyarbakir and Tunceli.

Elazig Mayor Suleyman Selmanoglu confirmed that there are no casualties, but that the quake caused landslides in mountainous areas, saying some houses were damaged in Sarikamis village and that the minaret of a mosque had collapsed.

An earthquake measured 5.9 magnitude in the western province of Kutahya's Simav district in May killed two people and damaged 103 buildings.

Turkey is a quake-prone country with much of its territories lying atop the North Anatolian fault. In 1999, more than 18,000 people were killed in two devastating earthquakes in the country.


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