On Tuesday, April 23, 2024, the Archaeological Museum of Heraklion participated in the Operational Earthquake Field Exercise “MINOAS”.

The exercise took place in the Region of Crete and was organized by the Ministry of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection and the Organization for Earthquake Planning and Protection (OASP). During the exercise, after the alarm message sounded from 112, the Museum and Administration building, which houses employees of A.M.H. and Heraklion Ephorate of Antiquities, was evacuated.

The active participation of visitors and employees resulted in the most effective testing of the existing evacuation plan and safety protocols. Valuable conclusions have already been drawn from the exercise to optimize plans and procedures.

The participation of all of us in the experiential implementation of the evacuation plan in the context of such an exercise of an unprecedented scale, has a clear positive sign for the sense of security and the maximization of prevention, issues in which the A.M.H. gives special importance.

We sincerely thank for their cooperation all the employees, the mandated Observers, and especially the public who happened to be visiting the Archaeological Museum of Heraklion at that particular moment and actively participated by following the instructions of the Museum’s guards.