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3 strong earthquakes shake vacation island of Crete

The largest Greek island of Crete was shaken by earthquakes three times within half an hour this morning. According to the local media, people escaped with a fright and no one was injured. According to information provided by the fire department and police, there was no damage either.

The quakes occurred south of the island at a depth of between three and five kilometers below the seabed and were reportedly felt as far away as the city of Heraklion on the north coast with magnitudes of 4.1, 4.8 and 4.5. The islanders are aware of the strong activity of the earth in the region. "There is always a lot of activity there," a seismologist told the television station ERTNews. It is not yet possible to say whether the situation has calmed down with the three strong quakes, so we will have to wait and see.

Already 1000 quakes in Crete this year
According to statistics from the Athens Geodynamic Institute, there have been around 1000 tremors in the region of Crete this year alone. However, there have only been just over a dozen quakes with a magnitude of 4.0 or more. Crete lies to the north of a deep tectonic rift where the African and Eurasian plates meet. This repeatedly causes earthquakes.