Two strong aftershocks have struck the Greek island of Kos within minutes of each other, sending startled residents and tourists scurrying away from homes and restaurants.
A 4.4 magnitude tremor struck Saturday night at 8.09pm local time (6.09pm BST), followed by a 4.6 magnitude shock 16 minutes later, according to the Athens Geodynamics Institute.
The first one was closest to the island, 13 miles to the northeast at a depth of 6 miles.
Worried residents and tourists gathered in the middle of the town's main square, as far away as possible from buildings, with some taking to social media to say they believed another earthquake was happening.
The tremors are among the strongest aftershocks since an earthquake that killed two men on Kos and injured nearly 500 other people across the Aegean Sea region in the early hours of Friday morning.
Hundreds of residents and tourists spent Friday night sleeping outdoors on the island, too afraid to return to their homes or hotels after the quake.
Many camped out in parks or olive groves, or slept in their cars or on beaches and even sunbeds.
During the day in Kos, churches, an old mosque, the port's 14th-century castle and other old buildings that suffered in the quake were being checked by archaeologists and experts from Greece's Culture Ministry.
The U.S. Geological Survey measured the quake Friday at magnitude 6.7, with Greek and Turkish estimates a fraction lower. Two men, a Turk and a Swede, were killed when a wall collapsed into a popular bar in the Old Town of Kos.
The most seriously injured in Greece were airlifted to hospitals on the mainland and the southern island of Crete, and at least two were still in critical condition Saturday.
Associated Press
