A wave of relentless seismic activity has sent thousands of residents and tourists fleeing Santorini, the iconic Greek island known for its whitewashed cliffs and picturesque sunsets. The island, one of the world’s most sought-after travel destinations, has been rocked by hundreds of earthquakes in recent days, raising fears of a larger, more destructive event on the horizon.
More than 6,000 people have left the island in recent days, according to Greek public broadcaster ERT. On early Tuesday morning, hundreds were seen gathered at the island’s main port, clutching their belongings as they waited for ferries to take them to safety in Athens. Airlines have also stepped in, scheduling 15 emergency flights to evacuate residents.
One long-time resident, 35-year-old Julian Sinanaj, described the unfolding crisis:
“I work on the island, I have been a resident for years. But today… nobody was expecting this to happen. What is happening now on the island is incredible.”
The Aegean Sea has been in near-constant motion, with over 550 tremors recorded since the weekend. The most powerful—a 4.9-magnitude quake—hit over the weekend, followed by a 4.8-magnitude tremor early Tuesday. Though small compared to historic quakes in the region, the frequency and intensity of these tremors have left many deeply unsettled.
According to Greece’s Earthquake Planning and Protection Organization (OASP), this seismic storm could last for weeks—an ominous warning for an island sitting on a geological time bomb.
Santorini’s dramatic cliffside landscape is the result of one of the largest volcanic eruptions in human history, an explosion that reshaped the island 3,600 years ago and is believed to have contributed to the downfall of the Minoan civilization.
More recently, in 1956, a 7.5-magnitude earthquake devastated the region, killing 53 people and injuring over 100. While smaller tremors are common in this highly active seismic zone, sustained activity of this scale is rare, raising concerns that something larger may be brewing beneath Santorini’s caldera.
Greek authorities are urging calm, with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis promising that the government is monitoring the situation closely.
“This is a very intense geological phenomenon,” Mitsotakis stated Monday, emphasizing that emergency response teams are on standby.
Schools across Santorini have been shut down until Friday, and residents have been warned to avoid large indoor gatherings due to the risk of collapsing structures.
Yet, despite these reassurances, life on the island has ground to a halt. Shops are shuttered. Businesses are closed. And as 18-year-old resident Dori put it:
“Everything is closed. No one works now. The whole island has emptied.”