ELAZIG, Turkey, March 8, 2010 (AFP) - Eleven people were killed when a strong earthquake measuring 6.0 on the Richter scale struck the eastern Turkish province of Elazig early on Monday, a senior local officil said.

The quake struck at 04:32 am (0232 GMT) with an epicentre near the Karakocan town in Elazig province, the Istanbul-based Kandilli observatory said on its web site.

Erol told AFP that eight of the victims were killed in the Okcular village while three people were killed in the hamlet of Yukarikanatli close to the village.

"Villages consisting mainly of mud-brick houses have been damaged, but we have minimal damage such as cracks in buildings made of cement or stone," he said.

Rescuers were striving to save people trapped under two houses razed to the ground in Okcular, he added, without giving numbers.

The CNN Turk news channel reported that around 20 people had been brought to local hospitals for treatment for various injuries.

The disaster management centre in capital Ankara announced that it had sent rescuers, blankets and tents to the quake region.

The tremor was felt in neighbouring provinces and sent the residents of Elazig rushing out on to streets in panic, CNN-Turk said.

Several aftershocks were felt in the region.

Deadly earthquakes are frequent in Turkey, which is crossed by several active fault-lines. Two powerful tremors in the heavily populated northwest claimed about 20,000 lives in August and November 1999.