Crete: Seismologists are concerned about the fault that caused the 1965 earthquake

OASP President Efthymios Lekkas arrived in Crete early in the morning and took part in the first large-scale meeting in the municipality of Phaistos in the presence of civil defense and fire department representatives.

There are serious concerns that yesterday’s earthquake occurred on the active Pobiya fault, which in 1965 caused tremors of magnitude 6.1. From the evening of Thursday 18 May, after a 5.1 magnitude earthquake on the Richter scale, which shocked the inhabitants of southern Crete and, in particular, the municipality of Phaistos and Messara at 21:58, there is great anxiety. From that time until today, several sensitive aftershocks have followed, totaling more than 25 earthquakes, the largest of which had a magnitude of 4.2.

According to cretalive.gr, at the beginning of the meeting, the mayor of Phaistos briefed Mr. Lekkas on the situation in Messara after the earthquake measuring 5.1 on the Richter scale and on reports of damage.

As Mr. Lekkas noted during a briefing for municipal authorities and officials, in the last two years, there has been increased activity in the so-called tectonic depression of the prefecture of Heraklion, extending to the west and east. The scientific evidence collected to date shows, he said, that “We are in a phase of excitement.” Efthymios Lekkas, in a conversation with ERT after the meeting, said that they need to understand how this phenomenon arose, and most importantly, to coordinate in order to cope not only with this event, but also, in extreme cases, with larger events.

With regard to the openings, the President of the CAPA stressed that the damage was mainly to old buildings and that they are more interested in schools and whether they will be able to function during the electoral process, noting that there will be a quick opening today. Experts are asking residents to be more careful and are in constant contact with the relevant local authorities about the measures to be taken. It is not yet certain that the 5.1 magnitude quake was a major quake, as it takes hours to verify, but the phenomenon caused by smaller aftershocks appears to be calming down.

By decision of the municipality all schools will be closed today, Friday 19 Mayfor safety reasons and in order to check if there is any damage from the seismic process.

Seismologist Gerasimos Papadopoulos was also concerned after the earthquake that hit Crete on Thursday evening centered on Fates. As he explained on Friday morning, “A 5.1 magnitude quake is not a minor one. On the other hand, we have a strong seismic sequence that does not allow us to be sure whether a 5.1 Richter quake is a major one. 2-3 days”. After clarifying that “the earthquake source that intensified yesterday is different from the focus in Arkalohori, where yesterday there was an earthquake with a magnitude of 3.3 Richter, which was a late aftershock.”

Gerasimos Papadopoulos noted that there is “anxiety because the epicenter is on land,” while, as he put it, “caution is required because the same area was hit by an earthquake measuring 6.1 on the Richter scale in 1965.”

According to him, it is most likely that an earthquake of magnitude 5.1 on the Richter scale occurred on the active Pompeii fault, which in 1965 gave a powerful earthquake of magnitude 6.1. “This is not one of the most active seismic areas in Crete and Greece, but all the facts indicate that it is necessary to pay great attention to this phenomenon,” he added, drawing the attention of the public and authorities to the need to monitor this phenomenon.

Regarding earthquakes in the Gulf of Corinth over the past 24 hours, Papadopoulos recalled that “The Gulf of Corinth gives strong earthquakes, magnitude 6 on the Richter scale and above, and they worry us because they have tragic consequences. Such earthquakes occur every 25-30 Now exactly 28 years have passed since the previous similar earthquake in June 1995 in Aigio.

In turn, Akis Tselentis, director of the Institute of Geodynamics, said in a Facebook post that “the sequence of aftershocks is absolutely normal, so the likelihood that yesterday’s 5.1 Richter earthquake was not the main one is extremely small. We expect that over the next few days aftershock action will gradually decrease, and after periods of zero seismicity for short periods of time, we should get some slightly larger aftershocks, about 4 points. The whole effect can last even 2 months before it fades completely.”

Residents living in stone houses or houses built with old seismic protection (before 1970), or newer houses with obvious violations, should definitely ask the technical services of the municipality or OASP crews that come to the area to check them before moving into them . “It goes without saying that the known seismic prevention measures must always be observed,” added Mr. Celentis.

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