Greece's government declared a state of emergency on Santorini on Thursday after hundreds of undersea earthquakes shook the resort island for nearly a week. The ministry of civil protection's announcement will provide authorities faster access to state resources.

Earthquakes are still rattling Greece’s volcanic island of Santorini every few minutes as authorities bolster their emergency plans in case the hundreds of temblors in recent days are a harbinger of a larger quake to come.

Since last week, thousands of residents have left the island by plane and ferry, as hundreds of earthquakes continue to shake the region.

A 5.2 magnitude tremor has been detected between the Greek islands of Santorini and Amorgos — the most powerful recorded since activity started on on January 31.

Repeated earthquakes are rattling Greece’s volcanic island of Santorini. Scientists say the quakes aren't related to a slight increase in volcanic activity that has also been registered recently.

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.

A new earthquake swarm rattled Santorini early Thursday, adding to an unprecedented seismic wave that has puzzled scientists and driven a mass exodus

The strongest earthquake recorded was magnitude 4.6 at 3:55 p.m. Sunday, at a depth of 14 kilometers (9 miles), the Athens Geodynamic Institute said.

Hundreds more people were expected to leave Greece's Santorini island on Wednesday as tremors shook the popular summer tourist destination for a sixth day. About 6,000 people have left on ferries and planes in recent days as hundreds of small quakes were registered in the surounding sea,