While Greece is in a highly seismically active area, it's extremely rare for any part of the country to experience such an intense barrage of frequent earthquakes.

Experts say the Greek island of Santorini has been hit by more than 1,000 earthquakes, but they're not linked to the region's active volcanoes.

According to officials, more than 11,000 people have left Santorini, with around 7,000 departing by ferry and 4,000 people leaving by air. Hundreds of earthquakes have rocked the island, the strongest of which was a magnitude five tremor on Tuesday.