Large cracks appeared yesterday in the wall and ceiling of a house in the village of Psachna, some 16 kilometers north of Halkida in central Evia. The area has been hit by five earthquakes registering over 4 on the Richter scale over the past week. By yesterday, seven Psachna buildings had been declared due for demolition and 42 temporarily uninhabitable.

Seismologists expressed qualified concern yesterday over the series of moderately strong earthquakes that occurred over the past week in central Evia, which was shaken by another three quakes yesterday morning. There have been no injuries, although hundreds of buildings were damaged.

“The only encouraging factor is the area’s seismic history, which does not prove that a very strong earthquake is due to take place,” Athens Geodynamic Institute Director Giorgos Stavrakakis said.

Yesterday’s earthquakes — which registered 4.6, 4.7 and 4.8 on the Richter scale, striking between 4 and 6.38 a.m. — all had their epicenter near the village of Psachna north of Halkida, some 70 kilometers north of Athens. They were preceded by a 4.9-Richter quake on Wednesday and a 4.6-Richter quake last Friday, both in the same area.

So far, following Wednesday’s quake, government inspectors have designated seven buildings in Psachna as dangerous enough to require demolition, and another 42 were declared temporarily uninhabitable.