ATHENS, Greece–No injuries were reported after a 6.1 magnitude earthquake struck under the Mediterranean seabed east of the Greek island of Crete, Thursday.
(Greece is an earthquake-prone country which last year also experienced a 5.8 magnitude earthquake cited in Ionian Islands leading to the evacuation of several thousand people.)
The US Geological Survey (USGS) said that the quake’s epicenter was 20 kilometers below sea level, 50 km east of the Crete on the Cretan-Rhodes ridge where the African and Eurasian tectonic plates meet.
The USGS also added that an aftershock occurred in the same areas few minutes after.
Meanwhile, the Athens Observatory earlier reported that the first tremor was strongly felt nearby Crete, 1807 GMT striking some 14 km off the island of Kassos.
Greece is one of Europe’s most earthquake-prone countries. In January 2014, several thousand people found themselves homeless on the holiday island of Cephalonia in the Ionian Islands after a 5.8 magnitude quake.
H/T: Inquirer.net
