A rather disturbing article in Le Monde entitled ‘Des Seismes Sans Precedent Historique Sont Possibles En Europe’ (‘Facing the possibility of unprecedented earthquakes in Europe’) is rapidly taking over the internet, receiving thousands of shares, while it causes great anxiety and fear to Greeks.
The scientific article is based on surveys carried out by 50 research scientists, seismologists and engineers, who monitored seismic activity throughout the years, updating the maps of the seismic regions throughout Europe, as part of the SHARE (Seismic Hazard Harmonization in Europe) international platform.
According to Le Monde’s article, the areas most likely to be affected by future large scale seismic activity – possibly of a magnitude that could reach 9 on the Richer scale – are Greece, Turkey and Italy. Crete, Rhodes, Samos, Mytilene, Patras, Cephalonia, Zante and Epirus, as well as a large part of the Corinthian Gulf, are depicted on the map in deep red. This report stresses that these areas fall in the high-risk category, indicating that it’s not at all impossible for Greeks to experience earthquakes of similar magnitude to those which occurred in March 2011 in Fukushima, Japan (Tohoku earthquake/tsunami).
Renowned seismologist Efthimios Lekkas said that he fully agrees with Le Monde’s report but wanted to make clear that in any case, with or without this survey, the possibility of a large earthquake can never be ruled out.
“This is a serious scientific approach course we cannot overlook, nor can we fully embrace it,” he explained.
“Personally, I do not believe that it is possible to have an earthquake of around 9 on the Richter scale in our country. In Japan, where the catastrophic earthquake of Fukushima took place, the crack size was 300km deep, while in Greece the tectonic structures are much smaller. Nevertheless, nobody can say with complete certainty what might happen in the future. Time will tell.”
It is worth mentioning, though, that this is the first time science has been presented with such detailed charts and maps recording seismic regions in Europe. The SHARE team has been recording earthquakes over the last thirty years, while the project is said to have cost 4.1 million euros, 80 per cent of which was funded by the European Union.