"Although the crucial 48-hour period is not yet over, this was probably the main earthquake and as there have been no reports of damage or related incidents, we feel there is no reason for alarm," the earthquake protection organisation said in a statement.
The initial, and stronger, jolt struck at 12:09 p.m. local time just off the southern coast of the Peloponnese Peninsula.
“It was a big quake. Everything moved a lot. I stayed at home but a lot of people rushed out onto the streets very worried,” said Takis Dimopoulos, a health worker in the Peloponnese port of Kalamata, which was close to the epicenter.
That 6.5 magnitude quake was followed by a slightly weaker seismic event near the same epicenter two hours later.
Shaking from the stronger jolt was felt widely across the peninsula and as far north as the capital of Athens as well as across the Ionian Sea in southern Italy.
