Earthquake hits Turkey-Iran border, Seven killed

A 5.7 magnitude quake struck Iran’s north-western border with Turkey early Sunday killing Seven persons, including three children.

The capital of Turkey, Ankara, announced that seven persons were killed by the heavy tremor in Turkey while Iran was still assessing damage and casualties.

According to Turkey’s interior minister Suleyman Soylu, five persons were injured and taken to hospital, while officials believed some were still buried under building rubble.

Soylu added that search and rescue efforts were ongoing.

The European Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) said the quake had a depth of 5 kilometers (3.1 miles).

The epicentre of the quake, which struck at 9:23 a.m. (5:53 UTC), according to media reports, was near the Iranian village of Habash-e Olya, less than 10 kilometers (six miles) from the border.

© 2020, maritimemag. All rights reserved.