A 5.7-magnitude earthquake was recorded at sea on Friday off the small islands of Strovadia in the Ionian Sea in western Greece, according to the Euro-Mediterranean Observatory, without causing casualties or damage.
Seismologist Erasimos Papadopoulos told Greek public television ERT: “The tremor was recorded at 09:12 local time (07:12 GMT) at a depth of 20 kilometers in an area where earthquakes are common.”
The earthquake was followed by two tremors of magnitude 2.9 and 4.5 respectively, according to Papadopoulos.
The tremor was felt by residents of the nearby island of Zante and the Peloponnese Peninsula.
The Strovadia archipelago consists of two small islands, the first is uninhabited and the second includes a monastery that sustained minor damage, according to the Greek News Agency, citing sources in Zante.
Craftsmen who were working to restore the monastery were evacuated, according to the same source, but no casualties were recorded during the earthquake.
Greece is located on several large geological faults, and tremors are often recorded, especially at sea, without often causing casualties or major damage.
The last earthquake that claimed victims dates back to October 30, 2020, in the Aegean Sea between the Greek islands of Samos and the Turkish city of Izmir, and its magnitude reached 7 degrees.