Strong earthquake shakes Crete

The inhabitants of West Crete – or at least the light sleepers among them – were roused at about 5.20 am this morning by an SMS from the 112 emergency service warning of an imminent earthquake. The tremor was predicted to be of 5.5 magnitude on the Richter scale and “light shaking” was likely to be experienced. The actual earthquake, when it arrived a few seconds later, was as strong as has been felt in the area for some years, and went on for a relatively long time – over five seconds.

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Samaria Gorge closed after earthquake – updated

The event
A 45-year-old Spaniard was in intensive care in Chania General Hospital last week following a 4.9 magnitude earthquake at approximately 8.00 am on Sunday morning (13th August). The epicentre of the earthquake was some 7 km east of Sougia, with a focal depth of 5 km. The tremor was felt in Palaiochora, Sougia, and Sfakia, but no damage was reported. There had been a smaller earthquake of 3.4 magnitude near Palaiochora at 4.22 the same morning.

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