Greek Island Santorini is in crisis mode as thousands flee due to a series of earthquakes. More than 6,000 residents have evacuated, with many gathered at local ports awaiting ferries to Athens.
CNN reports hundreds of people carrying their belongings were seen this morning waiting at a port on the island for a ferry to take them to Athens.
Over the weekend, over 200 undersea tremors shook the island, primarily between Santorini and Amorgos.
The latest tremor measured 4.8 in magnitude early Tuesday, following a stronger quake of 4.9 over the weekend. In just three days, around 550 tremors with a magnitude of 3.0 have been recorded in the Aegean Sea surrounding the island. The Greek Earthquake Planning and Protection Organization cautioned that the intense seismic activity may persist for weeks.
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has urged calm, describing the situation as “a very intense geological phenomenon.”
To aid evacuation efforts, 15 additional flights to Athens were scheduled for Tuesday.
“We’re monitoring the situation very closely and, following discussions with the ministry of civil protection, will act accordingly,” an airline spokesperson told the Guardian. Ferry companies said they would also provide extra services.
“I work on the island, I have been a resident for years. But today… nobody was expecting this to happen, what is happening now on the island is incredible,” Julian Sinanaj, a 35-year-old resident, told Reuters.
Santorini, known as Greece’s “Instagram Island,” is home to approximately 20,000 permanent residents and around 3.4 million tourists each year. It is situated near the boundary of the African and Eurasian tectonic plates and is historically vulnerable to seismic events.
Santorini's caldera, formed by a massive volcanic eruption 3,600 years ago, experienced a significant earthquake in 1956 that resulted in 53 deaths and over 100 injuries.
