Cephalonia earthquake sequence took place on the well known Cephalonia Transform Fault (CTF) zone, which is a dextral strike-slip transfer fault splitting the subduction zone of the Hellenic Arc. This is one of the most active fault zones in Greece, characterized by high seismicity. Due to this high activity rate, Cephalonia, Zante, ithaca, Lefkada and part of the mainland are the only areas that are included in the highest seismic hazard class of the Greek building code.
CTF zone and focal mechanisms of previous earthquakes (Louvari et al., 1999).
CTF zone is segmented into separate segments, which can be activated eithr by themselves, or, less often, in conjunction, causing the generation of even larger events. In the area west of Cephalonia, where the recent earthquake sequence is believed to have originated, Gre.Da.S.S. team had segmented the fault into two discrete segments, for both of which the maximum expected earthquake had been calculated at 6.1, which was the main shock magnitude, indicating that only one segment has been activated.
Snapshot of Gre.Da.S.S., showing the two small segments of CTF zone just west of Cephalonia island
The following photos show a selection of only a few surface effects and structural damages.
The team
Members of the Earthquake Geology Research Team visited the island for fieldwork a few days after the main shocks. They were:
This preliminary report was prepared by Alex Chatzipetros and initial information on the seismotectonic model and the accompanying stress transfer will be presented in EGU 2014 (Chatzipetros et al., 2014).
References
Chatzipetros A., Sboras S. and Pavlides S. (2014). The Cephalonia (Greece) January 26, 2014 M6.1 earthquake: preliminary interpretation and stress transfer analysis, Geophysical Research Abstracts, 16,EGU2014-16820.
Louvari E., Kiratzi A. and Papazachos B. (1999). The Cephalonia Transform Fault and its extension to western Lefkada Island (Greece): Tectonophysics, v. 308, no. 1-2, p. 223–236, doi:10.1016/S0040-1951(99)00078-5.
Members of the Earthquake Geology Research Team visited the island for fieldwork a few days after the main shocks. They were:
- Prof. Spyros Pavlides
- Lect. Alex Chatzipetros
- Dr. George Papathanassiou
- Dr. Sotiris Valkaniotis
This preliminary report was prepared by Alex Chatzipetros and initial information on the seismotectonic model and the accompanying stress transfer will be presented in EGU 2014 (Chatzipetros et al., 2014).
References
Chatzipetros A., Sboras S. and Pavlides S. (2014). The Cephalonia (Greece) January 26, 2014 M6.1 earthquake: preliminary interpretation and stress transfer analysis, Geophysical Research Abstracts, 16,EGU2014-16820.
Louvari E., Kiratzi A. and Papazachos B. (1999). The Cephalonia Transform Fault and its extension to western Lefkada Island (Greece): Tectonophysics, v. 308, no. 1-2, p. 223–236, doi:10.1016/S0040-1951(99)00078-5.