Last night was difficult for the residents of Santorini, Anafi and Amorgos and of all the island that are affected by the continuous earthquakes. The tremors were recorded in the sea region south-southwest of Arkesini, Amorgos island from 04:24 until 05:36 with many of those exceeding 4 on the Richter scale while another three quakes over 4 Richter were recorded from 07:51 until 09:57 on Thursday.
Residents of Santorini and Anafi told the Athens-Macedonian News Agency that they kept waking up all through the night due to the seismic activity, and this had become tiring and exhausting. The earthquakes are short, however, they noted and this was a relief.
“These continuous tremors are starting to tire us. Especially last night. It was continuous. There is concern, but the problem is that we are also wide awake,” Anafi Mayor Iakovos Poussos told the Athens- Macedonian News Agency, adding that fire brigade forces have been sent from the island of Karpathos.
“The weather conditions also create a sense of insecurity due to the ban on sailing,” he said and noted: “We are in communication with the state, but there is no problem so far”.
The strongest earthquake in the sequence of tremors in the vicinity was recorded on Wednesday night and measured 5.2 on the Richter scale. Its epicentre, according to the Geodynamics Institute of the Athens National Observatory was in the sea south of Amorgos.
As the director of the Geodynamics Institute, Vassilis Karastathis, explained to the ANA-MPA, the specific tremor does not change the assessment. “The rates of seismicity remain the same, even the 5.2 earthquake is part of the same sequence, it does not change the picture substantially. We cannot say anything more at this time. We are processing the data, new data that is more reliable after seismographs were installed. At noon, we will redo the statistics of the last few days. I think that the residents should arm themselves with patience because it will take a long time. As soon as we see the first signs of de-escalation, we will pass on the information,” said Karastathis.
Amorgos Deputy Mayor for general duties and civil protection, Stamatis Simos, told the ANA-MPA that the people on the island are calm. “We are closer to the epicentre, so we shake more and the rumble is noticeable. He also said that most people have not left the island, except from some families and teachers, as the schools are closed”.
“Until this moment people are calm. It’s something that doesn’t scare us. Over here the ground is solid. It is not weakened like Santorini’s. Nor are the houses like those of Santorini, which are suspended in the Caldera. Over here they are detached houses. If you find even a two-storey house, most of them are stone-built. Especially here, in Arkesini, where we are closer to the earthquake. People are not afraid,” he noted.
SOURCE; ANA-MPA
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