Seven dead in Turkey as 5.7 earthquake strikes western Iran

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Seven people were killed in Turkey in a magnitude 5.7 earthquake that struck western Iran early Sunday morning, Turkish Interior Minister Suleiman Soylu said.

The quake centered on the Iranian city of Khoy and affected villages in the Turkish province of Van.

Soylu told a news conference in Ankara that three children and four adults were killed in Turkey’s Baskule district. Five injured people had been taken to hospital while others remained trapped under the debris of fallen buildings, he added.

Emergency teams have been sent to the mountainous region.

According to the European Mediterranean Seismological Center the quake had a depth of 5 kilometers (3 miles).

The region has a history of powerful earthquakes. Last month a quake centered on the eastern Turkish city of Elazig killed more than 40 people.