EARTHQUAKE: Magnitude 6.0 CRETE, GREECE 15/06/2013 16:10 (UTC)‏

[lenseman]

Whoops!!


A magnitude 6.0 earthquake has occurred CRETE, GREECE at:
34.22N 24.97E Depth 10km 15/06/2013 at 16:10:59 (Universal Time)

Earthquake location with respect to nearby cities:
433 km S Athens (pop 729137, local time 19:10:59.7 2013-06-15)
124 km S Iráklion (pop 137154, local time 19:10:59.7 2013-06-15)
113 km SW Ierápetra (pop 12536, local time 19:10:59.7 2013-06-15)
88 km S Pírgos (pop 1134, local time 19:10:59.7 2013-06-15)



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[lenseman]

With large aftershocks:

Magnitude 4.8 15/06/2013 16:29 CRETE, GREECE

These parameters are preliminary and subject to revisions.
For updates, please consult: http://www.emsc-csem.org


A magnitude 4.8 earthquake has occurred CRETE, GREECE at:
34.38N 25.00E Depth 60km 15/06/2013 at 16:29:01 (Universal Time)

Earthquake location with respect to nearby cities:
416 km S Athens (pop 729137, local time 19:29:01.2 2013-06-15)
106 km S Iráklion (pop 137154, local time 19:29:01.2 2013-06-15)
97 km SW Ierápetra (pop 12536, local time 19:29:01.2 2013-06-15)
70 km S Pírgos (pop 1134, local time 19:29:01.2 2013-06-15)


Some reports put the initial quake at 6.2 others at 6.0 but fortunately it occurred south of the island and this part of the coastline does not have many marinas.



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[charles_reed]

No marinas and few anchorages or ports.

 

[Glyka]

Never experienced a tsunami though FWIK (since 1.500 b.c. that is, and it was a volcano)

 

[macd]

From earthquake-report.com "Update 16:39 UTC : Based on the preliminary information that we have at the moment, we are almost certain that this earthquake will NOT generate damage or injuries + we do NOT expect a tsunami at these Magnitudes." This seems to have been borne out.

The event was described as "a typical subduction earthquake", as the African and the Aegean chunk of the Eurasian tectonic plates collide. The most active fault in this region is the North Anatolian fault, responsible for a succession of very damaging quakes between 1939 and 1999, each one further west than its predecessor. It's likely that the next such quake will occur in the Sea of Marmaris area.

Speaking of Santorini/Thira (Glyka's reference above), the archipelago has recently risen 14cm as the magma chamber below expands: http://thewatchers.adorraeli.com/20...c-island-have-risen-14-cm-since-january-2011/
Mind you, our old pals Rivonia and Charles Reed reckon certain practices on the part of "a very obnoxious Greek port person" are a greater reason for not visiting the place.

 

[Tony Cross]

Actually there are no marinas on the south coast of Crete and only four ports suitable for a sailing yacht. There are several smaller fishing harbours though.

We get a couple of 6+ earthquakes a year, the African/European plate boundary is just south of Crete. In the marina here at Agios Nikolaos (north-eastern end of Crete) we didn't feel this one at all, we almost never do feel them whilst in the water. Sometimes we hear them though, it was windy yesterday so we probably wouldn't have heard this one.

On the hard-standing here all yachts go into metal cradles for just this reason. When we're on the hard we feel and hear a couple of minor earthquakes a week. On a calm still day for example, the boat will suddenly rattle for a few seconds and then settle down again.

I think we're fortunate on Crete that the relative motion of the plates is at right-angles to the plate boundary, so excessive strain doesn't build up quite so much. In the Ionian and Anatolia, where the relative plate motion is much more in line with the plate boundary they get enormous strain building up which is why the earthquakes in these regions are much more destructive.