As hundreds of earthquakes rocked the well-known vacation spot for a fourth day, schools stayed closed and more flights were planned to assist people in leaving the Greek island of Santorini on Monday.
Since Friday, officials have been forced to close schools in Santorini and the neighboring islands of Ios, Amorgos, and Anafi due to tremors that have been detected between the volcanic islands of Santorini and Amorgos in the Aegean Sea.
On Monday, Santorini was rocked by earthquakes every few minutes, some of which had magnitudes higher than 4, prompting residents to avoid small ports and inside areas. As a precaution, disaster response units were stationed on the ground.
Since some of the island’s most inhabited districts are situated on precipitous cliffs, experts predict that the seismic activity will last for weeks.
Greek television was informed by Efthymios Lekkas, a professor of tectonic geology and disaster management who is a member of a team of experts evaluating the situation on the ground, that “we estimate it (the activity) will continue for some days and there could be a lengthy seismic sequence.”
According to local officials, some people who were on the island for employment were leaving, but regular inhabitants were not too concerned because they were accustomed to earthquakes.
In response to a request from Greece’s Civil Protection Ministry, Aegean Airlines said that it would run three more flights to and from Santorini on Monday and Tuesday to make travel easier for locals and tourists.
Greece is frequently rocked by earthquakes and is situated on several fault lines.
Around 1600 BC, one of the biggest volcanic explosions in history created the current shape of Santorini. The region’s most recent eruption took place in 1950.
Experts stated the recent minor volcanic activity near Santorini was unrelated to the earthquakes.