6.3-magnitude quake rocks Crete

An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.3 on the Richter scale hit Crete on Tuesday afternoon, the National Observatory of Athens’ Geodynamic Institute reported.

The undersea tremor’s epicenter was located some 23 kilometers off the southeastern coast of the island, which is still recovering from an earthquake of 5.8 Richter in late September.

It struck at 12.24 p.m. and was felt across the broader region, rattling the islands of Kasos, Karpathos and Rhodes, and has been followed by a succession of aftershocks.

The fire service says there have been no immediate reports of injuries.

Seismologist Efthymis Lekkas, who heads Greece’s Organization of Earthquake Planning and Protection (OASP), told state broadcaster ERT that Tuesday’s earthquake did not come from the same epicenter as that in Arkalochori, in the region of Iraklio, on September 27.

One person died in that earthquake and hundreds of homes and businesses were badly damaged.

According to local media, Tuesday’s tremor sent people scurrying out of their homes and into the streets, while reports of damage to buildings are starting to come in, particularly from the southeast region of Sitia.