Moderate quake shakes Crete: Greek monitor

An earthquake measuring 5.5 on the Richter scale shakes the southern Greek island of Crete says the National Observatory of Athens.

An earthquake measuring 5.5 on the open-ended Richter scale shook the southern Greek island of Crete overnight, the National Observatory of Athens said on Thursday, but no casualties were reported.

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The quake caused people to leave their houses when it struck at 3:20 am (0020 GMT), local authorities said. No major damage was reported on Thursday morning.

The observatory said the epicentre of the quake was at Zakro, in the east of the island, 385 kilometres (240 miles) southeast of Athens.

On Sunday a strong quake measuring 6.5 on the Richter scale killed two people when it struck the country's Peloponnese region.

Greece experiences more seismic activity than any other country in Europe, accounting for half of the continent's recorded quakes.