Two earthquakes struck the Ionian island of Lefkada, Greece within a few hours on Wednesday evening and Thursday morning.
The first tremor measuring 3.9 occurred on Wednesday evening, followed by a stronger 4.4 earthquake overnight.
The epicenter of the second earthquake was 7 km northwest of the city of Lefkada, according to the Geodynamic Institute of the National Observatory of Athens.
No damage has been reported.
Lefkada was hit by a powerful earthquake in 2015
Lefkada was hit by a powerful 6.1 earthquake in 2015. Two people were killed, 120 houses were damaged, with 20 of them so badly damaged that they were deemed unsuitable for use.
According to experts, the earthquake caused the displacement of the entire island by 36 cm (14 inches). Athanasios Ganas, Director of the Geodynamic Institute of Athens, noted at the time that the island indeed had moved toward the south.
It is a big movement, which surprised us, said Ganas. “It makes sense after this quake,” admitted seismologist-researcher Gerassimos Chouliaras. A similar movement happened on Cephalonia after the earthquake on January 2014, he added.
The Ionian Islands in Greece have frequent earthquake activity
The frequency of earthquake activity in Greece makes it rank sixth in the world and first in Europe in the damage caused by tremors.
This is due to some unique geological characteristics, caused by the movements of the tectonic plates in the Eastern Mediterranean region.
The area that experts believe is most prone to be hit by earthquakes is specifically along the coasts of Western Greece, from Corfu to Western Crete. A great deal of destructive seismic activity can generally occur in those regions.
Of course, the entire nation of Greece is prone to a great deal of seismic activity, including earthquakes. As scientists say, the entirety of the famous “Greek fault” is an earthquake zone, starting from around the island of Lefkada, curving across the sea all the way to Rhodes.
The Greek fault has been in existence for the last five million years.
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