PM MItsotakis chairs meeting at Samos to assess quake aftermath, draw action plan

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis met with the parents of the two teenagers who lost their lives at Friday's earthquake that hit the island of Samos and the eastern Aegean, during his visit to the island on Saturday.

The Greek Premier personally expressed condolences and his deep sorrow for the tragic event.

On Saturday afternoon, Mitsotakis is chairing a broad meeting at Samos with Deputy Minister of Civil Protection & Crisis Management Nikos Hardalias, several key ministers and local officials on the aftermath of the 6.7 Richter scale earthquake.

"I want to gain a first-hand understanding of the damages, the immediate next steps that need to be taken, and also begin to draw medium-term interventions that need to be pursued, mainly in matters concerning public and private infrastructure," he stressed at the start of the meeting.

Later on Saturday Mitsotakis will inspect damages at Vathi and Karlovasi in Samos.

Meanwhile, the municipalities of eastern and western Samos were on Saturday declared in a state of emergency for six months, until April 30 2021, by order of minister Hardalias.

The Chios island municipality was also declared in a state of emergency on Saturday following a meeting of local officials, in view of extensive post-quake damages there.