According to the Geodynamic Institute of the National Observatory of Athens, a magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck the sea area north of Crete on Thursday morning.
As of now, there have been no reports of injuries or serious material damage.
The epicenter was located 56 km north of Neapolis, off the eastern coast of Crete, with a focal depth of 60.3 km. The earthquake was felt across several regions, including Attica, the Peloponnese, and the Cyclades islands.
President of the OASP, Efthimios Lekkas, noted the earthquake’s significant depth, suggesting a low risk of a tsunami and minimal damage in Crete.
Thanasis Ganas, director of research at the Geodynamic Institute, described it as a typical earthquake at an intermediate depth, reassuring that minimal aftershocks are expected despite its wide radius of effect.
Just fifteen minutes later, a second tremor measuring 3.1 on the Richter scale was recorded in the same area, with an epicenter 53 km north of Neapolis Lasithi and a focal depth of 59.4 km.
Earlier in May, the same magnitude struck about 20 kilometers (12.5 miles) off the eastern coast of Crete and south-southwest of Kasos at a focal depth of 64.4 kilometers (40 miles).
The quake resulted in notable disturbance and was particularly felt on Crete and Rhodes, prompting a precautionary tsunami warning from emergency services.
Addressing concerns about connections to recent earthquakes in Santorini and Turkey, Lekkas affirmed:
“There is absolutely no correlation with the seismic activity in Santorini or Turkey. The geological contexts are distinctly different. This event is situated on the Greek arc, whereas Santorini experiences volcanic activity, and Turkey’s earthquakes are along the Anatolian fault. Given the depth of 60 kilometers, we do not expect a significant aftershock sequence or consider it a precursor to a larger earthquake.”
A 6.2-magnitude earthquake that struck in late April in Istanbul, injuring at least 150 people, has reignited fears of a far more catastrophic event.
In early 2025, a series of moderate earthquakes hit Santorini in the central Aegean, causing fears of a larger quake.
The undersea tremors—sometimes only minutes apart—resulted in thousands of local residents fleeing Santorini, one of Greece’s most popular tourist destinations, as well as the nearby islands of Amorgos, Ios, and Anafi.
Between January 26th and February 13th, more than 18,400 quakes, mainly of a low magnitude, were recorded off islands in the Cyclades archipelago, according to the University of Athens seismology laboratory.
Greece is located on several fault lines and is occasionally impacted by earthquakes.
