ATHENS — The general emergency plan for the immediate and short-term management following an earthquake, known as 'Enceladus', was activated on Tuesday in response to the strong 6.3-Richter earthquake on the island of Crete, 23 km east of Zakrou in Lasithi, at the orders of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Minister Christos Stylianides.

Based on the plan prepared by the General Secretariat for Civil Protection, the ministry has mobilised all civil defence forces for managing the aftermath of an earthquake, while the fire brigade's 3rd Special Unit for Disasters (EMAK) is on standby, along with regional authority services.

The Hellenic Police are patrolling southeastern Crete on the ground and from the air, while the coast guard is on heightened alert along the coastal zone in the event of a tsunami.

According to information released by the authorities so far, the damage is restricted to small landslides affecting some parts of the road network in Sitia and the collapse of part of the Church of Agios Nikolaos in the village Xerokambos, without any reported injuries.