Hundreds of earthquakes that have rattled the Greek islands since last week have prompted the evacuation of thousands from the tourist hotspot Santorini.
Santorini Mayor Nikos Zorzos told The Associated Press that the tremors are a “seismic swarm” and could continue for weeks before eventually diminishing.
“This phenomenon may play out with small quakes or a single, slightly stronger one, followed by gradual subsidence,” Zorzos said, adding he was cautiously optimistic after speaking to seismologists.
More than 200 undersea earthquakes up to magnitude 5 have been recorded in the volcanic region since Friday.
EMERGENCY CREWS DEPLOYED ON SANTORINI AS EARTHQUAKE SWARM WORRIES GREEK EXPERTS
Roughly 9,000 people have left Santorini since Sunday, with more emergency flights and ferries adding services to accommodate departures, the BBC reported.
Santorini has canceled public events, restricted travel to the island and banned construction work in certain areas. The quakes have caused cracks in some older buildings, but no injuries have been reported. The island has a population of approximately 15,500 residents.
EARTHQUAKE OFF COAST OF MAINE SHAKES NORTHEAST
Efthimios Lekkas, head of the state-run Earthquake Planning and Protection Organization, said the epicenter of the earthquakes in the Aegean was moving northward away from Santorini, and emphasized there was no connection to the area’s dormant volcanoes.
“This may last several days or several weeks. We are not able to predict the evolution of the sequence in time,” Lekkas told state-run television.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
