The Greek minister for climate change and civil protection will go to Crete to assist with assessment and coordination activities in the aftermath of this morning’s 6.0-magnitude earthquake.

Christos Stylianides, the minister for climate change and civil protection announced on Twitter that he would be going to Crete to help with the “assessment of the situation and coordination of the actions of all involved bodies”.

He added that deputy minister Evangelos Tournas would be joining him, alongside Vassilis Papageorgiou, the general secretary of civil protection, and Foivos Theodorou, the general coordination director.

The Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport announced that had sent 20 engineers to Crete to assist in the “planning of actions” following the strong earthquake this morning.

In a statement, the Ministry said that Costas Karmanlis, minister of infrastructure and transport, and George Karagiannis, the deputy minister, would also be in Crete to assist with developing a plan to “deal with the consequences of the earthquake”.

The statement said that building and infrastructure inspections would start immediately in order to assess damage.

Meanwhile, the Ministry would be working with the municipality of Minos – Pedida to create a coordination centre to better inform and serve citizens who had been affected by the earthquake.

In a video, Greek firefighters and first responders can be seen walking past buildings that have been damaged in the earthquake. One building has been reduced to rubble, while another is seen with dramatic structural damage. Heavy equipment can be heard in the background.

Following a 6.0-magnitude earthquake earlier this morning, and ensuing aftershocks across the island of Crete, schools in the city of Heraklion have been evacuated.

Heraklion mayor Vassilis Lambrinos told Antenna television: “The earthquake was strong and long in duration.

“We have requested that schools are evacuated. The children are out in the playgrounds.”

Greece’s Fire Brigade released a statement announcing that they would be flying in 30 firefighters from their disaster response units, as well as specialised equipment to assist in operations responding to the earthquake on Crete.

The statement said that sniffer dogs would be brought in to assist with search efforts.

The organisation added that patrols were being carried out across the wider area where the earthquake occurred, and said that all disaster units and fire department services on Crete had been placed on general alert.

The statement also urged all citizens to use caution and heed the instructions of all local authorities.

Holidaymakers were evacuated from Crete hotels after the earthquake struck this morning.

Sarah Williams-Long, a doctor at King’s Hospital in London who had been vacationing at the Creta Maris Beach Resort with her partner and three-year-old son told The Independent that the experience had been harrowing.

“They’ve evacuated us from our hotel in case there’s a second earthquake – we’re waiting to be taken to a hotel away from the higher buildings,” she said.

“We’ll hopefully be allowed back in to hotel if nothing happens in the next 40 minutes. It was terrifying. Initially there was just a very slight rumble, like waiting for a train underground, but it quickly increased causing the building to shake.

“Everyone instinctively got under the tables until we were asked to leave the building. Some people were visibly shaken – one of the chefs collapsed. It was very dramatic.”

Twitter user Yorgos Sasslis shared a photo shortly after the quake shook the island of Crete this morning.

He said: “At only 10km depth, we REALLY FELT this one,” adding that everything where he was seemed to be alright, save for “a few shattered picture frames”.

One person was killed in the earthquake that stuck Crete this morning, authorities reported, while a number of others sustained injuries.

A man was crushed when the dome of a church in the town of Arkalochori caved in during renovation works. His death was first reported by ERT public television and then confirmed by local police.

Nine others were injured in the quake as many buildings were damaged, authorities from the ministry of civil protection said.

The quake and aftershocks prompted many people to rush outdoors, with hotels and schools in the city of Heraklion being evacuated.

At 9.17am a 6.0-magnitude earthquake struck the Greek island of Crete, The European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre reported.

The epicentre was four miles north of the village of Thrapsano, 16 miles south southeast of the city of Heraklion, 153 miles south southeast of the Greek capital Athens.

It struck at a depth of 6.2 miles, causing dust to be released from the earth and structural damage to a number of buildings.

The EMSC has also reported at least nine aftershocks since the initial quake struck, with the strongest registering a magnitude of 4.6.

Good morning and welcome to The Independent’s live coverage of the 6.0-magnitude earthquake that struck the Greek island of Crete this morning. Stay tuned for all the latest updates.