Azores volcanic island hit by thousands of quakes starts evacuation as fears grow

Authorities on a mid-Atlantic Portuguese island hit by thousands of small earthquakes in recent days started evacuating people living at the bottom of coastal cliffs on Thursday as fears of a stronger tremor or a volcanic eruption grow.

Since Saturday, over 2,000 earthquakes, with a magnitude of between 1.6 and 3.3, have been recorded on the volcanic island of Sao Jorge in the Azores archipelago, according to the region's CIVISA seismo-volcanic surveillance center.

The small quakes, which have caused no damage so far, were reported along the island's volcanic fissure of Manadas, which last erupted in 1808. A big earthquake hit the island in 1980, causing severe damage.

CIVISA has raised the volcanic alert to level 4 out of 5, meaning there is a "real possibility of eruption," and said the number of earthquakes was above normal levels.

Those in hospital or in care homes in the municipality of Velas, which is likely to be the most affected area, have already been transferred to Calheta on the other side of the island.