The only confirmed victim of today’s earthquake worked as a construction worker to repair the church, which partially collapsed in the village of Arkalochori. His colleague escaped unharmed.
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It is from the village of Arkalochori that the biggest damage to buildings has been reported so far. Firefighters and rescuers inspect damaged buildings in and around the village and rescue people who cannot get out of their homes.
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According to Greek seismologists, the outbreak of the earthquake was about 20 kilometers away from the largest Cretan city, Heraklion. “The earthquake was strong and long,” said the mayor of Heraklion.
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The Athens Geodynamic Institute said the quake had an epicenter 246 kilometers southeast of the Greek capital Athens.
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“It simply came to our notice then. We have been recording activity in this area for several months. It was a strong earthquake that did not take place under the sea, but under land. It affected populated areas, “seismologist Gerasimos Papadopoulos told ERT.
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“We urge residents of damaged older buildings to stay outside. One additional shock can cause a collapse. We are talking about buildings built before 1970. Buildings built after 1985 are built to a higher standard, earthquakes can withstand earthquakes, “said seismologist Efthimios Lekkas, who leads the Greek organization for planning and earthquake protection.
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In the largest city in Crete, a large number of people took to the streets. Teaching has been interrupted in schools and experts are checking the statics of buildings. The walls of several older houses collapsed in the city. According to hotel owners, the shock did not significantly damage their buildings.
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Greek seismologists have said that they have been seeing more activity in the area for some time. The main shock was followed by others of lower intensity.
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The European Mediterranean Seismological Center (EMSC) originally recorded a magnitude of 6.5, according to the American Geological Survey (USGS), the earthquake had a magnitude of 6.0 degrees.
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Greece intersects several significant faults of the earth’s crust, and earthquakes are therefore not uncommon. They usually do without sacrifices.
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A seven-magnitude earthquake last killed October 30 last year, killing two people on the Greek island of Samos. In western Turkey, the earthquake claimed 114 people and injured more than a thousand.
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The worst balance in the last three decades was the earthquake in 1999 with a magnitude of 5.9 degrees with an epicenter near Athens. It claimed 143 lives.
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