6.9 R earthquake strikes Samos

According to information from islanders, the facades of buildings have fallen from the earthquake in Samos and the sea has come out of the port.

A resident of the island, speaking to SKAI, said that glassware and mirrors were broken at home, while, according to Giorgos Aftias, who comes from Samos and spoke to people from the island, part of the church in Karlovasi has collapsed. The journalist also mentioned that there is serious damage to old buildings, houses on the island, but stressed that the island has many new buildings, which do not seem to have been damaged. Giorgos Aftiasalso spoke about some minor injuries of residents, mainly in the port.

According to the mayor of Western Samos, Alexandros Lymperis, a citizen was injured after a wall fell, reports samosvoice.gr.

Cracks have also been reported in buildings in Vathi of Samos, without any reports of collapses.

The Minister of Civil Protection Nikos Hardalias is going to Samos together with a special team of EKAM by helicopter and a special rescue team of EKAB. The first image from the earthquake in Samos is limited damage to old houses. Because there is no protocol for dealing with pandemics and earthquakes in parallel, in case residents do not have to stay in their homes they will be transferred to hotels and rooms for rent.

Buildings fell in Smyrna
Meanwhile, the earthquake caused much more serious damage on the Turkish coast, with buildings having collapsed in Smyrna (Izmir)

Lekkas: There was a tsunami warning
It was a surface earthquake and was felt throughout Greece, said the president of OASP, Professor Efthymios Lekkas, adding that there was a warning for a small tsunami. He said there should be no panic, noting that "the earthquake as a fact always worries us."

Papazachos for earthquake in Samos: Earthquakes even 6 Richter - May be more catastrophic
"It is a very big earthquake in Samos, 6.8, or 6.9 Richter. It is a well-known area with large faults. It will have a large seismic sequence ", said seismologist Vassilis Papazachos, speaking to SKAI, he said that many aftershocks will follow and some will be very strong, even of the order of 6 Richter. In fact, he stressed that they may be more destructive than the initial earthquake.

"It will have a great aftershock sequence, aftershocks that will last for months, but in great intensity for the next 48 hours and definitely next week. Because a part of the fault approaches the west coast of Samos, there is a case for some earthquakes to take place closer to the island, and although smaller in size they also have major effects. "Earthquakes of the order of 6 can very easily happen with such a strong earthquake", said Mr. Papazahos, and stressed that any house that shows a sample for damage should not be inhabited. "Any building that has some damage should not be inhabited, and should be checked by engineers," he said characteristically.