An earthquake measuring 5.1 on the Richter scale killed nine people and injured dozens more in an eastern region of Turkey late on Thursday.
At least six children were among the dead and 46 people were injured, the Public Works Ministry and rescuers told Reuters.
The tremor struck a rural area of Erzurum province, about 900 km (600 miles) east of the capital Ankara, levelling almost every structure in this village of one-story stone and mud houses in an elevated area.
"It was after 9 pm. There was a noise first, then we ran outside when we felt the shaking," said Mustafa Kayan, who lost two relatives in the quake. "All of the villagers were outside trying to pull those who were hurt out of the rubble."
The Public Works Ministry said Erzurum's Askale county was the epicentre. As many as 51 aftershocks shook the region.
The rescue operation, involving some 60 workers, ended on Friday morning, officials at the scene said.
The Turkish Red Crescent set up around 40 tents for survivors and was erecting hundreds more to shelter almost all of the village's 500 or so residents.
Small and moderate tremors are a near-daily experience in Turkey, which is criss-crossed with fault-lines. Poor construction of buildings has often led to high death tolls.
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