(Bloomberg) -- A magnitude 6.8 earthquake in Turkey’s eastern Elazig today killed four people, according to the country’s interior minister.

“We hope the death toll won’t be so high,” state-run Anadolu Agency said, citing Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu.

Two lives were lost in Elazig and two in Malatya, Anadolu Agency cited Soylu as saying. The earthquake occurred at 8:55pm local time in the eastern Elazig province at a depth of 6.75 kilometers, according to Anadolu. Many buildings were damaged or collapsed and tremors were felt in many cities across the region, Turkish TV outlets reported.

--With assistance from Robert Tuttle.

To contact the reporter on this story: Cagan Koc in Istanbul at ckoc2@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Onur Ant at oant@bloomberg.net, Polina Noskova

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