An earthquake rocked the northeastern Turkish province of Abri near the Iranian border today. Eighteen people have died and 27 are injured.
Preliminary measurments show the quake to measure a magnitude 5.1.
Reuters
Early reports indicate heavy damage to the areas affected, as the region is home to many remote villages. Many buildings are stone and mud, and were
devastated by the tremblor. The worst affected is the village of Yigincal, where all 18 deaths were reported.
There have been several aftershocks.
Turkey sees several sizable tremors a year due to the number of fault lines running through it. Most recently, a 5.1 quake killed 9 people in the
eastern part of the country in March 2004.
In August 1999, a massive quake measuring a magnitude 7.4 struck along the North Anatolian fault. An estimated 18.000 people died with over 20,000
injured.
[edit on 2-7-2004 by Banshee]
