This is not the first time in recent months that the eastern Mediterranean has been hit by a major earthquake. In September, a magnitude 5.3 earthquake rocked Crete, killing one person. On December 26, it was even a double earthquake that hit the island a few hours apart. A new tremor took place this Wednesday at 4:08 GMT according to the Athens Observatory. The epicenter of the earthquake was located at sea 48km south-east of Arvi, south of the city of Heraklion.
No damage was reported but Greek firefighters were mobilized this Wednesday morning to carry out checks in the affected area. According to Greek media, the earthquake was felt as far as Egypt. Greece is located on several earthquake faults and regularly experiences earthquakes. In October 2020, a 7.0 earthquake hit the Aegean Sea, between the Greek island of Samos and the city of Izmir, in western Turkey. Most of the damage occurred in Turkey, where 114 people were killed and more than a thousand were injured. In Greece, two teenagers had lost their lives in Samos.