Authorities in Santorini are bracing themselves for potential looting amid fears some will ‘exploit’ the thousands of homes left empty as residents continue to flee the earthquake-stricken Greek island.
Up to 11,000 people have so far scrambled to leave after a spike in seismic activity and dangerous landslides have raised concerns about a potentially powerful earthquake, with emergency rescue crews being deployed to the island.
Experts say earthquakes are being reported every ten minutes on the volcanic island – and the phenomenon 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,’ said Mayor Nikos Zorzos, adding he was cautiously optimistic after speaking to seismologists who described the swarm as a series of tremors of similar magnitude occurring in clusters.
Thousands of residents and seasonal workers have left the Cycladic Islands as quakes up to magnitude 5 have been recorded in the volcanic region since Friday.
Schools have closed, while ferry and commercial flight operators have added services to accommodate departures.
On Wednesday morning, alleyways in Santorini had begun to be cordoned off over safety fears, while a landslide – the latest in a spate of rockfalls over the last few days – was reported at Red Beach.
A fresh 4.0 magnitude earthquake was also recorded in Amorgos, just under 100km away from Santorini.
Authorities in Santorini are bracing themselves for potential looting amid fears some will ‘exploit’ the thousands of homes left empty by fleeing residents. Pictured: People queue for a ferry on Tuesday night
Up to 11,000 people have so far scrambled to leave after a spike in seismic activity
Authorities left on Santorini fear there could now be a spate of thefts in the wake of the evacuations.
Police are on high alert and have stepped up patrols in the island’s capital, Fira, as well as imposed roadblocks to prevent potential break-ins, Proto Thema reported.
Patrols are also being conducted in tourist hotspots, such as Oia and Kamari.
One concerned businessman said: ‘We are afraid that some will take advantage of the situation and start breaking into houses. We have already heard about incidents.’
Several nearby islands are also on alert after more than 200 undersea earthquakes were recorded in the area over the past three days.
Prominent Greek seismologist Gerasimos Papadopoulos cautioned that the current earthquake sequence – displayed on live seismic maps as a growing cluster of dots between the islands of Santorini, Ios, Amorgos, and Anafi – could indicate a larger impending event.
‘I have never felt anything like this and with such frequency – an earthquake every 10 or 20 minutes. Everyone is anxious even if some of us hide it not to cause panic, but everyone is worried,’ said Santorini local Michalis Gerontakis.
Mobile phones on the island blared with alert warnings about the potential for rockslides, while several earthquakes caused loud rumbles.
Residents and visitors wait at the port of Athinios to leave the island on Tuesday
Hundreds of cars queue to embark a ferry as people leave in the wake of recurring earthquakes
Experts say earthquakes are being reported every ten minutes on the volcanic island – and the phenomenon could continue for weeks before eventually diminishing
Firefighters disembark a ferry on Tuesday in anticipation of increased activity on the island
Police are on high alert and have stepped up patrols as thousands of residents leave the island
Authorities banned access to some seaside areas, including the island’s old port, that are in close proximity to cliffs.
‘These measures are precautionary, and authorities will remain vigilant,’ Civil Protection Minister Vasilis Kikilias said late Sunday following an emergency government meeting in Athens.
While Greek experts say the quakes, which have reached magnitude 4.9 are not linked to Santorini’s volcano, they acknowledge that the pattern of seismic activity is cause for concern.
‘We have a very intense geological phenomenon to handle,’ Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said from Brussels on Tuesday, where he was attending a European meeting.
‘I want to ask our islanders first and foremost to remain calm, to listen to the instructions of the Civil Protection (authority).’
Residents and visitors were advised to avoid large indoor gatherings and areas where rock slides could occur, while hotels were instructed to drain swimming pools to reduce potential building damage from an earthquake.
Fire service rescuers who arrived on the island on Sunday set up yellow tents as a staging area inside a basketball court next to the island’s main hospital.
Some residents and local workers headed to travel agents seeking plane or ferry tickets to leave the island.
Falling rocks from landslides caused by earthquake tremors on Santorini
A shocking video taken on the island yesterday morning, and shared on social media, shows the coastline of Santorini shaking violently with clouds of dust billowing into the air
‘We’ve had earthquakes before but never anything like this. This feels different,’ said Nadia Benomar, a Moroccan tour guide who has lived on the island for 19 years. She bought a ferry ticket Monday for the nearby island of Naxos.
‘I need to get away for a few days until things calm down,’ she said.
A queue of cars and hundreds of people formed at the island’s main port Monday afternoon to catch a ferry leaving Santorini.
Crescent-shaped Santorini is a premier tourism destination with daily arrivals via commercial flights, ferries, and cruise ships.
The island draws more than 3 million visitors annually to its whitewashed villages built along dramatic cliffs formed by a massive volcanic eruption – considered to be one of the largest in human history – more than 3,500 years ago.
That eruption, which occurred around 1620 B.C., destroyed a large part of the island, blanketed a wide area in meters (feet) of ash and is believed to have contributed to the decline of the ancient Minoan civilization, which had flourished in the region.
Although it is still an active volcano, the last notable eruption occurred in 1950.
