5.2-magnitude tremor hits northern Greece; no damage reported

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A 5.2-magnitude tremor hit northern Greece Sunday evening, authorities said. The earthquake occurred offshore from the Chalkidiki peninsula, about 40 km southeast of Thessaloniki, Greece's second-largest city, the Athens Institute of Geodynamics reported.

The tremor hit at 7:03 pm local (17:03 GMT) at a depth of 15.9 kilometers, the institute said, adding that a 4.2-magnitude quake was recorded four minutes later, along with several smaller tremors.

"There is a small fissure in the area, which has a moderate seismic activity. It will be a great surprise if a major event occurs," Costas Papazachos, Professor of Applied Geophysics and Seismology at the University of Thessaloniki told The Associated Press. A 3.9 tremor had occurred in the same area Saturday. There have been no reports of damage so far, police and fire service officials have told local media.

The earthquake was felt over a wide swath of northern Greece. Tremors of that magnitude occur frequently in Greece, which lies close to the collision point of the African and European tectonic plates.

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