"I spoke with the president of the Regional Government of the Azores, José Manuel Bolieiro, to discuss the situation on the island of São Jorge and the availability of all the means of the Republic that are necessary, in addition to the support that the Armed Forces and @ipma_pt have ensured", wrote António Costa, on his Twitter account.

The prime minister also indicated that he will remain "in direct and permanent contact" with the president of the regional executive, of the PSD/CDS-PP/PPM coalition, 24 hours a day and seven days a week.

The seismic activity that has been recorded since Saturday afternoon on the island of São Jorge "continues to be above normal", with "20 earthquakes being felt" since Tuesday.

In its most recent seismological statement, the Azores Regional Civil Protection and Fire Service, which cites CIVISA, revealed that the 20 earthquakes had a magnitude that varied between 1.6 and 2.7 on the Richter scale and were felt with the intensity maximum of III/IV (Modified Mercalli Scale).