'Four dead' in Turkey quake

An earthquake shook eastern Turkey tonight, killing at least four children.

The quake, with a preliminary magnitude of 5.1, was centred in the town of Cat, in Erzurum province, some 540 miles east of Ankara, the capital, the Istanbul-based Kandilli Observatory said. It occurred at 9.30pm (18.30 Irish time).

Governor Mustafa Malay said a house in the town of Askale collapsed in the quake, killing four children. Another person was injured in a nearby village.

People rushed out of homes into the streets in panic and dozens were admitted to hospital with shock throughout the province, he said.

People calling for news of loved ones jammed phone lines, Malay added.

A bridge was also damaged and was closed to heavy vehicles.

The quake was also felt in neighbouring provinces.

Earthquakes are frequent in Turkey, which lies on active fault lines. In 1999, two quakes killed about 18,000 people in north-west Turkey.