Quake rattles Paphos, Limassol

Paphos was shaken by an earthquake recording a magnitude of 4.0 in the early hours of Thursday morning, with no structural damage or injuries reported.

The Cyprus Geological Survey Department said the quake measuring 4.0 on the Richter Scale occurred at 02:34 am, 30 km northeast of Polis Chrysochous and at a shallow depth of 12 kilometres and was mainly felt in the Paphos and Limassol districts.

The earthquake was also felt across the island, said the Cyprus Seismological Centre.

Thursday’s quake in Paphos follows a 3.9 magnitude earthquake recorded on 19 November and several aftershocks in the area.

Earlier on 11 January, Paphos was rattled by a 6.5 magnitude earthquake in the same area, with aftershocks recorded until the end of the summer.

The 6.5 magnitude earthquake in January was one of the strongest quakes ever recorded.

It was the biggest earthquake to shake the island since a 6.5 on the Richter scale quake struck Paphos in October 1996, when two people died – the strongest in the previous 100 years.

A sizeable 5.1 magnitude earthquake shook Cyprus on 3 February, 53 km northwest of Polis, at a sea depth of 24 kilometres.

Cyprus is a secondary earthquake-prone zone, but strong tremors of this magnitude are uncommon.

The biggest quake in recent years was a magnitude of 6.8 in 1996, killing two people in Paphos.

The Cyprus Geological Survey Department said it was monitoring activity following the quake on Thursday morning.