A 4.9 earthquake hit the island of Evia in central Greece on Tuesday evening. The island was rattled by a series of aftershocks throughout Tuesday after an early morning quake measuring 4.8.
There is no information on damages.
The focal depth of the earthquake was five kilometers, and the epicenter was eight kilometers east southeast of the village of Zarakes in southern Evia.
The exact magnitude, epicenter, and depth of the quake might be revised within the next few hours, as seismologists review data and refine their calculations or as other agencies issue their reports.
Tuesday, a day of earthquakes and aftershocks in Evia
A series of earthquakes have been recorded in the Evia region since Tuesday morning. It started with a 4.8-magnitude earthquake, recorded at 06:32 in the sea area nine kilometers southeast of the village of Zarakes in Evia or about fifty-eight kilometers east-northeast of Athens, according to a statement from the Geodynamic Institute of the National Observatory of Athens. The earthquake was also felt in Athens.
This was followed by a weak earthquake with a magnitude of 4.1 on the Richter scale at 07:23, at a distance of 56 km east-northeast of Athens, according to the Geodynamic Institute, with the epicenter of the tremor located in the sea area eight kilometers northeast of Nea Styra, Evia.
A minute later at 07:24, a new earthquake of magnitude 4.2 occurred in the sea area eight kilometers southeast of Zaraki in Evia and fifty-six kilometers east-northeast of Athens.
The director of the Geodynamic Institute, Seismology Professor Akis Tselentis, was reassuring concerning the earthquake risk after the 4.8 magnitude tremor in Evia on Tuesday.
“It was most likely the main earthquake,” Tselentis said to the Athens-Macedonian News Agency (ANA) and added that there will be an extensive post-seismic sequence.
As he pointed out, the earthquake was felt as far as away as Corinth, while the region from which it originated has no history of significant seismic activity.
The professor of seismology at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTH), Manolis Skordilis, was optimistic about the seismic activity recorded early on Tuesday morning in the region of Evia. In his statements to the Athens-Macedonian News Agency (ANA), he clarified that there was no historical evidence to show that there were strong earthquakes in the area.
“The fact that past earthquakes have been recorded 30 to 40 kilometers away from the epicenter of the current earthquake gives an optimistic message,” Skordilis said, adding that Tuesday’s tremors indicate a minor activation in the area but that there is no reason for concern.
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