Fresh quake barrage hits Greek party island

A state of emergency has been declared in Santorini after the strongest earthquake was recorded in days of near-constant tremors, which have almost emptied the famous Greek tourist haven.

A fresh series of quakes hit the Greek island of Santorini early on Thursday local time, part of an unprecedented seismic wave that has baffled scientists and led to a mass exodus of residents.

Seven successive tremors measuring over 4.0 magnitude were recorded in the early morning by the Athens Geodynamic Institute, Greece’s leading authority on earthquake analysis.

This was after a 5.2 quake, the strongest so far since the weekend, was recorded on Wednesday evening.

Experts have so far been unable to give a definitive estimate on when the seismic activity will end, but stress that it is unprecedented.

Passengers begin to board a ferry to the Athens port of Piraeus in Santorini Island, Greece. Picture: Getty Images

A passenger sits on the dock in Santorini while waiting for a ferry bound for the Greek mainland. Picture: AP

“The intensity is falling but has not yet stabilised,” the institute’s research director Athanassios Ganas told state TV channel ERT.

“We’re at the halfway point,” the institute’s deputy director Vassilis Karastathis told the station.

The institute on said over 6,000 tremors had been recorded in the Aegean Sea near the islands of Santorini, Amorgos, Anafi and Ios since January 26.

Government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis said Greece’s “entire state mechanism has been mobilised” to prepare for “any eventuality”.

Passengers board a ferry bound for the Greek mainland, in the earthquake-struck island of Santorini. Picture: AP

Over 11,000 residents and seasonal workers have left Santorini since the weekend by sea and air, with operators adding extra flights and ferries.

Experts say the region has not experienced seismic activity on this scale since records began in 1964.

“The most likely scenario is for the seismic activity to continue for certain days or weeks at the same intensity,” the head of Greece’s earthquake planning and protection authority, Efthymios Lekkas, told Proto Programma radio.

Santorini lies atop a volcano which last erupted in 1950 — but an experts’ committee on Monday said the current tremors were “not linked to volcanic activity”.

No injuries or damage have been reported.

A woman from China looks on from a caldera at Firostefani, as in the background stands the island of Therasia. Picture: AP

Rescue teams have been sent to the area as a precaution, and additional seismic sensors have been deployed.

Lekkas on Wednesday warned there were five areas at risk of possible rockslides on Santorini, including the ports of Fira and Athinios.

Schools on more than a dozen islands in the Cyclades island group in the Aegean Sea have been shut as a precaution until Friday, prompting many people with children to leave Santorini until the quake scare eases.

Santorini attracted about 3.4 million visitors in 2023. Upwards of a million of those were cruise ship passengers.

European travel agents said the number of foreign visitors to Santorini at this time of year was minimal, with more bookings expected in the spring months.

Passengers begin to board a ferry to the Athens port of Piraeus on February 4, 2025 in Santorini Island, Greece. Picture: Getty Images

Cars queue to embark a ferry as people leave on the Greek Island of Santorini. Picture: AFP

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On Tuesday, thousands of people fled the island by sea and air for a third day as more earthquakes shook the top travel destination.

Some 7000 people have left the island, known for its spectacular cliffside views and dormant volcano, which has been hit by hundreds of tremors since last week, officials said.

One quake with a magnitude of 4.9 hit early Tuesday and hours later was followed by a 5.0-magnitude tremor.

Some 750 earthquakes have shaken the island and the surrounding 1000sq/km since January 24, according to Greek monitors.

The Australian Embassy in Greece posted a message advising: “Australians in the area should monitor the media and follow the advice of local authorities.”

An empty swimming pool is seen in a group of clifftop buildings in the town of Oia on the earthquake-struck island of Santorini, Greece. Picture: AP

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Monday also appealed for calm, while admitting that the phenomenon is “very intense”.

Santorini attracted about 3.4 million visitors in 2023.

European travel agents contacted by AFP said foreign visitors to Santorini at this time of year were minimal, with more bookings expected in the spring.

Ted Stathis, who runs a catamaran company and a sushi restaurant, said he expected the disruption to “blow over soon.”

“I have to admit, it’s something out of the ordinary,” the 54-year-old said.

“I mean, we have had tremors throughout the years, but sporadically. These are just many, many concentrated.”

“As long as they start subsiding, we should be in the clear,” Stathis said, noting that most of his reservations start later this month.

– with Agence France-Presse (AFP)

Originally published as Fresh quake barrage hits Greek party island