News & Current Events
Powerful 6.1 Quake Shakes Crete, Triggers Tsunami Alert — British Tourists Left Terrified
A strong 6.1-magnitude earthquake was recorded off the coast of Crete this morning, and locals are preparing for a potential tsunami.
A tsunami warning was issued by the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC), which also warned residents of Greece, Turkey, Italy, and even farther away France and Portugal to check with their local authorities for updates.
According to reports, the tremor was felt in sections of Israel and Turkey as well as around the Aegean Sea.
Residents in Crete reported via EMSC being woken up by the quake. One witness in Schisma Elounta, some 30 miles from the epicentre, said the “whole room was shaking”. Several said the tremor lasted for around half a minute.
One British holidaymaker said on TikTok in the immediate aftermath: “That was very scary. I was scared last time but this time I’m terrified … That’s been two earthquakes in the past week and I just want to get home safely. I just want to leave.”
She said she was trying to reassure her children “but now we’re worried about a tsunami”. “This is just my worst nightmare.”
Another holidaymaker told TikTok followers: “Excuse the state of me. I’ve just been woken up by a f***ing earthquake.”
Fearing the tsunami warning, she added: “I’m just looking at the sea now thinking, “does that look any different?””
Others described objects falling from shelves on the lower floors of their homes, and the fear of seeing “the building sway and creak”. One was woken up by the ‘rumbling’ to discover ‘the bed was shaking profusely’.
Although no significant damage was first reported, local media reported small rockslides on rural roads and grocery merchandise scattered on floors.
Despite not having received any calls for assistance, the Greek fire department reported that all of its personnel were on high alert throughout the island.
According to the state news agency ANA, cars are scouring the area to examine the situation, and firefighters have been placed on general alert.
Locals and visitors vacationing on the island at the beginning of the summer were startled by the tremor, which struck 49 miles off the city of Heraklion at 6:19 a.m. (0319 GMT) on Thursday, according to reports on X.
According to state television ERT, the early morning earthquake in the Cretan regions of Rethymno and Lasithi startled up a lot of people, who hastily left their homes as a precaution.
“Everything shook like mad , never felt one that strong,” said one witness in Malia.
Victoria, holidaying in Hersonissos, told MailOnline she and her boyfriend were woken up this morning ‘to our bed shaking lots.
She said part of the balcony door’s metal frame came off when it happened, and that it was “very scary.”
Melissa Ford, staying in Rethymno with family, told MailOnline: “We were woken soon after 6am to the shaking of the walls in our hotel room and the government alarm going off on our phones warning us of an earthquake.”
“It was quite the shock. I imagine it lasted about 30 seconds if not longer. Fortunately, it didn’t wake our children and although there were after shocks, we didn’t feel them.”
CCTV footage from a home was released by the local media, showing the camera wobbling and overhead power lines trembling.
In a Cretan supermarket, pictures showed household items being thrown off the shelves.
Alexis Kalokerinos, the mayor of Heraklion, told ERT that the city was not experiencing any special issues and that closing schools would not be required.
Athanassios Ganas, general head of research at the Geodynamics Institute of the National Observatory of Athens, told ERT that the tremor “occurred at a great depth and there is no particular reason for residents to worry.”
According to the USGS, the earthquake struck at a depth of 68 kilometres (42 miles).
It was felt in the surrounding area and occurred just over a week after a 6.1-magnitude earthquake near the island of Kasos, east of Crete.
Numerous tremors have struck the tourist-popular area in recent months, forcing schools in Santorini and nearby islands to temporarily close.
Between the islands of Santorini, Amorgos, Ios, and Anafi in the Cyclades group southeast of the Greek mainland, thousands of earthquakes, mostly of modest size, have been reported since January.
They haven’t resulted in any serious harm or fatalities.
The Aegean Sea is frequently struck by earthquakes since it is situated where the African and Anatolian tectonic plates meet.
However, according to specialists, the area has not seen a phenomenon of this size since records started in 1964.
Greece is among the most earthquake-prone nations in Europe.
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