Volcanic activity detected in Santorini
Source: NEOS KOSMOS
Greece’s civil protection minister has called a meeting with Santorini and disaster response officials following an increase in volcanic activity in the famous tourist hotspot.
According to Associated Press, in an announcement late Wednesday, the Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Ministry said monitoring sensors had picked up “mild seismic-volcanic activity” in Santorini’s caldera.
Back in 2011, there was similar volcanic activity recorded in the area which lasted for 14 months but caused no issues.
The Hellenic Volcanic Arc stretches from the Peloponnese in southern Greece through the Cycladic islands.
The announcement said scientists have noted the increase in activity in the northern part of Santorini’s caldera.
“According to the scientists, based on the currently available data there is no cause for particular concern.”
Santorini is one of the most popular tourist spots in Greece but it was also the site of one of the largest volcano eruptions in human history.
During the Bronze Age around 1620 BC, a large part of the island was destroyed giving it the crescent shape it has today.
This eruption is also believed to have contributed to the decline of the ancient Minoan civilization.
The volcano is still active today but the last notable eruption was in 1950.
“What we must realise is that the Santorini volcano produces very large explosions every 20,000 years,” Efthymios Lekkas, seismologist and head of the scientific monitoring committee for the Hellenic Volcanic Arc, said on Greece’s ERT television.
“It’s been 3,000 years since the last explosion, so we have a very long time ahead of us before we face a big explosion.”
He later said that volcanic activity increases and decreases and can cause small earthquakes but “we will not face a big explosion, but a mild procedure”.
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