Rhodes hit by 5.0-magnitude earthquake as residents in Brit holiday hotspot rocked by tremors

POPULAR tourist hotspot Rhodes has been hit by a 5.0-magnitude earthquake that has left residents rocked.

The Greek island was struck down by terrifying tremors on Wednesday night that was also said to have been felt in Turkey.

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A 5.0-magnitude earthquake has shaken the Brit holiday hotspot Rhodes in Greece[/caption]

The exact spot of the tremor in the Aegean Sea around 41 miles south west of Rhodes

The Institute of Seismology at the University of Athens said the quake peaked at 5.00 on the Richter Scale.

With the tremor’s epicentre registering up to 55.1. KM south of the Dodecanese islands in the Aegean Sea at around 8:20pm.

It was described as a “relatively shallow” quake by seismologists reaching a depth of 43km.

However, European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) said the magnitude might continue to rise in the coming hours.

An EMSC spokesperson said: “Our monitoring service identified a second report from the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) which listed the quake at magnitude 4.9 as well.

“Based on the preliminary seismic data, the quake should not have caused any significant damage, but was probably felt by many people as light vibration in the area of the epicenter.”

Greece is prone to large cases of seismic activity along the holiday islands.

Scientists put this down to the “Greek fault” – an earthquake zone that goes from the island of Lefkada and all the way to Rhodes.

In March, southern Greece was also rocked by a 5.7-magnitude earthquake.

Intense shaking was felt hundreds of miles away in holiday hotspots across Greece after the quake struck off the coast of western Peloponnese.

Many residents noted the “long duration” of the tremors with some describing it as a “big one”.

One person said: “That was a big one! The centre of the quake wasn’t close to my home but I felt the shaking for 30 seconds at least!”

In January, the coast of Pelponnese was again hit by a 4.8 magnitude earthquake.

Earlier this year, scientists predicted a devastating earthquake of 8.5 magnitude could soon strike Greece similar to the one that wrecked havoc across Turkey in recent years.

It comes as another 4.8-magnitude quake struck Buan in South Korea on Wednesday morning.

Marking the first time such strong tremors have affected the region.

Local resident Park Hyo-seon said: “I felt the quake this morning. I live on the 15th floor, but I could feel the tremors coming up from the ground. They lasted for several seconds.”

As fellow resident in neighbouring Jeonju, Yoo Kyung-jong, said: “I was staying at home and I felt the whole building shake mildly for about 10 seconds.

“I thought a helicopter was passing by.”