In brief
With thousands of quakes recorded and the declaration of a state of emergency, Santorini's nearly deserted village of Fira braces for the uncertainty of ongoing seismic activity, leaving residents and experts anxious about what lies ahead.
Several significant earthquakes have been reported around the Greek island of Santorini, prompting authorities to declare a state of emergency. The popular tourist destination has been shaken by days of continual seismic activity, with thousands of tremors detected since last Friday. On Thursday evening, a quake measuring 4.6 on the Richter scale struck at 20:16 local time, followed by another tremor of 4.2 a couple of hours later in the waters between Santorini and the neighboring island of Amorgos.As the quakes continue to be recorded almost every minute, over 11,000 residents have evacuated, leaving the island nearly empty. Experts are cautioning that the duration of this "seismic crisis" remains uncertain. Although Thursday's quakes did not surpass the magnitude of the 5.2 tremor that occurred on Wednesday, officials are preparing for the possibility of stronger shocks. So far, there have been no major reports of damage, but authorities are on high alert in the face of this ongoing geological unpredictability. Magnitude ratings indicate the severity of earthquakes, with anything 6.0 and above classified as severe, while the 5.2 quake is listed as moderate.
