Greece: Earthquake shakes island of Crete; one person killed, nine injured

On Monday, an earthquake slammed the Greek island of Crete, killing one person and wounding numerous others, as well as producing rock slides near the country's fourth-largest city. As per the reports, the magnitude of the earthquake was at least 5.8. People in the city of Heraklion were forced to run onto the streets and schools were evacuated. Aftershocks shook the area repeatedly, causing more damage in settlements surrounding the epicentre.

The quake struck around 9:17 am, with an epicentre of 246 kilometres south southeast of Athens, according to the Athens Geodynamic Institute. Seismologist Gerasimos Papadopoulos said that this was not an unexpected occurrence. He told Greece's state broadcaster ERT that for several months they noticed activity in this area. 

One killed, nine injured

The preliminary magnitude was 6.0, according to the European-Mediterranean Seismological Center and the US Geological Survey, while according to the Athens Geodynamic Institute, it was 5.8. In the hours and days following an earthquake, it is usual for different seismological institutes to give varied magnitudes. According to Greece's Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Ministry, one person was killed, and nine others were injured. 

People took to the microblogging site Twitter to share pictures and videos of the incident. While sharing the video, one person wrote, "Video showing you people of the city of #Heraklion flocking towards the streets to safety after a major earthquake shook the region in #Crete in #Greece."

The fire department announced that 30 personnel of its disaster response units, as well as sniffer dogs and specialised rescue equipment, would be travelling to Crete and that all of its disaster response units and fire department services on the island would be placed on high alert. According to the EMSC, at least nine aftershocks struck the area, the two largest of which had a preliminary magnitude of 4.6.

Heraklion residents flocked to the streets

Heraklion residents flocked to the streets. Damage was recorded by local media in Crete, with historic stone buildings' walls crumbling in villages near the temblor's epicentre on the island's eastern side. Heraklion mayor Vassilis Lambrinos told private Antenna television that the earthquake was severe and lasted for a long time. He also said that they have asked for schools to be evacuated. 

(Inputs from AP News)

Image: AP