Israel’s National Security Council (NSC) concluded last week that the earthquake swarm occurring near the Greek island of Santorini in recent days could lead to a larger quake, capable of triggering a tsunami that would threaten the Israeli coast.
After experts presented their positions, the NSC instructed the government ministries to prepare for such a possibility.
Given Israel’s approximately 900 kilometer distance from the center of the quake swarm, the Jewish state would have about a two-hour warning of an incoming tsunami, according to a summary of the debate.
“The emergency bodies and government ministries are required to prepare for the fact that the State of Israel may encounter a tsunami wave,” the summary continued.
Ariel Heiman, a geologist and senior researcher at the INSS Institute for National Security Studies, told Israel’s Channel 12 News that even in the event of a tsunami from a strong earthquake in the Greek region, Israel will have enough time to prepare.
“About 2,000 earthquakes have occurred in the past week in Santorini,” continued Heiman. “The magnitude ranged between 4 to 5.3, with 24 of them in the last 24 hours. These tremors are the result of the collision of the African plate with Europe, a phenomenon that also causes volcanic eruptions,” he said.
While such a significant cluster of tremors can presage a larger quake, there is also a “considerable probability” that the phenomenon will fade, he added.
The danger Israel faces, if any, is only from a tsunami wave, he explained.
“Israel is about 1,200 kilometers away from Santorini, and a strong earthquake will not be felt, and even if it is, it will not cause damage,” he said.
“At the same time, since the epicenters of the earthquakes are in the sea, a strong earthquake is liable to produce tsunami waves, and these may also reach our shore,” he added.
“Therefore we must be vigilant, but not worried. This is an opportunity to remember and remind that a strong earthquake in Israel is not a question of if, but only of when, and it is important that we properly prepare for this threat,” he said.
According to the Israel Defense Forces’ Home Front Command website, deadly tsunamis have reached Israel’s shores in the past, including in the years 1222, 1303, 1870 and 1908.
Santorini itself was devastated by a large volcanic eruption in the 16th century, known as the Minoan eruption. It generated 115- to 492-foot high tsunamis that ravaged the northern coastline of Crete.
