ANKARA, Turkey: A moderate earthquake shook eastern Turkey on Sunday, causing damage to homes in at least seven villages in the eastern Turkish province of Agri, Governor Halil Ibrahim Akpinar said. Two people were slightly injured.

The quake, with a preliminary magnitude of 5.0, was centered in the town of Tutak, in Agri province, which borders Iran, the Istanbul-based Kandilli Observatory said. It struck at 9:38 a.m. (0738 GMT).

Akpinar said earlier the quake had knocked down a number of homes in the villages of Yukarikosk and Cobanova, but later said the quake caused damage to homes in at least seven villages, mostly demolishing barns and annexes of some of the houses. Two women were injured by falling debris at Yukarikosk but were not in serious condition, Akpinar said.

Derya Ozer, the daughter of the local administrator in Cobanova, said some old houses and barns came down in the temblor, while others had suffered cracks or other types of damage.

"But thank God there is nothing serious," she told CNN-Turk television. "Everyone is waiting outside. Nobody will go back into their homes."

The tremor also caused a power outage in the village, she said.

The quake was felt in several areas around Agri and sent residents running out of their homes in panic, Akpinar said.

A magnitude-5 earthquake can potentially cause considerable damage.

Earthquakes are frequent in Turkey, which lies on active fault lines. Two devastating earthquakes hit northwestern Turkey in 1999, killing some 18,000 people.