Galery

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Such a thing does not happen every day ... Where everything was covered with water until recently suddenly there was a new sandy beach! Apparently, fish had felt that in advance as they had taken care to leave the area nearly a month earlier.

These exceptional natural phenomena were recorded by a group of seismologists from the University of Athens, who visited Kefalonia to make the necessary measurements. Having firstly noticed that an endless beach had suddenly appeared, as if out of nowhere, they proceeded to a detailed examination of the area and found out that similar new beaches had appeared at other places on the island as well and the existing ones had increased inarea. The researchers concluded that a new peninsula, reaching 20 cm in some places, had appeared after the earthquake. They prove this phenomenon by collecting old photos and testimonies of local residents, introducing them to the public for the first time through the VimaScience section of To Vima newspaper.

 
Rarely is this phenomenon so obvious and visible, due to the peculiarities of the terrain in the area. Furthermore, the photographic evidence that proves it is indeed impressive. Here is how an earthquake can ultimately make a gift.

During the study, the group of seismologists has found out that there is a clear elevation of land in the region, resulting in a significant increase in the beach area. This phenomenon is associated with the recent seismic activity due to which the peninsula has risen by several centimetres.

The processes that take place in the bowels of the earth during earthquakes and volcanic eruptions lead to changes in its surface, which over time form mountains, gorges, rivers, lakes, beaches.

These geological phenomena are a miracle of nature. Since ancient times man has admired them and had due respect for them. Today, we pay less attention to the various natural phenomena and the reactions of living organisms, although some of them are signs of a coming earthquake.

The same happened at the end of this January. Since the beginning of the year, anglers in the area had seen the amount of fish in their nets decreasing until they had completely disappeared. Others had found out that animals on land had started to behave strangely too. They wanted to get away from where they lived and there was even evidence of domestic animals, such as ducks which, during the period in question, tried to escape - some of them were even able to break through barbed wire and escape. Let us recall that the first shocks were recorded in late January.

Endless beach

When they arrived on the island in mid-May, the scientists started working. They explored in detail the area of Paliki, carrying their special equipment everywhere and conducting seismograph surveys every two kilometres. When they reached Livadi area, they were taken by surprise. They saw an endless sandy beach, which had appeared after the recent earthquakes.

There was an abandoned building of a former prison near the sea before, which was destroyed. As the old photos show, the beach in front of the building was only a few metres wide while today the picture is quite different.

The acceleration of gravity was twice as large as expected

As noted by group leader Associate Professor Papadimitriou for To Vima newspaper, "According to the anti-seismic regulations, Kefalonia belongs to the third zone in which the maximum provided acceleration of gravity is 0.36 g. Performing studies in Kefalonia is necessary both because of the powerful accelerations and the macroseismic observations. It should be noted that the records of the accelerometers in Paliki (Lixouri, Havriata) showed a value significantly higher than the maximum value (0.36 g) stipulated in the new anti-seismic regulations. The values ​​were in the range of 0.6 g and 0.8 g in Lixouri and Havriata respectively."

Down with the prison, long live the beach!

Another participant in the expedition, namely final year student Nikos Galanos spoke before To Vima newspaper as well. "I played on this beach when I was a child. It was known to be quite narrow, and one had to go about 200 metres into the sea to reach deeper waters. There was a reserve on one side, an old house on the other, a semi destroyed prison in the middle. Although the decision to demolish it was taken long ago, none of the locals wanted to finish the job" until the earthquake has done two things at once - it has demolished the building of tears and created this beautiful beach, which can be seen in the photos. A happy coincidence brought here a former child, already a graduate student, to confirm through his memoirs that actually the beach has significantly widened. This significant widening is due to the fact that the sea there was very shallow and the earthquakes caused an elevation of the land, the result of which being a new beach visible to the naked eye.