Powerful earthquake rocking Cyprus in next six months not ruled out

Experts have not ruled out the possibility of a powerful earthquake rocking Cyprus in the next six months following Monday’s devastating one in neighboring Turkey.

This is what former head of the Cyprus Seismological Survey Department Kyriacos Solomis said to Philenews, adding that this possible one would not exceed a 6.5 magnitude on the Richter scale.

The risk of the “Cyprian Arc” – which is responsible for earthquakes in the wider area of Cyprus – was also raised by seismology professors Costas Papazachos and Efthymios Lekkas.

However, a different approach was taken by the Director of the Department of Geological Survey, Christodoulos Hadjigeorgiou.

He believes that the fact the earthquakes this week occurred on the Anatolian Arc may limit the effect of the “Cyprian Arc”.

The possible seismic activity in the Cyprus region may be due to re-arrangements to take place as a result of the earthquake in Turkey.

Solomis suggested that in the last 150 years Cyprus has not experienced an earthquake in excess of 6.5 on the Richter scale.

In the case of a possible powerful earthquake, the areas that might be affected the most are those of Apostolos Andreas, Famagusta, Paralimni and possibly Larnaca.

If the earthquake occurs about 50-60 kilometers east of Paralimni, it is expected to affect mainly the eastern regions, Solomis also said.

As far as possible damage goes, phenomena similar to Turkey should not be expected, he added, because the “Cyprian Arc” that usually causes earthquakes in Cyprus is underwater.

And also because buildings in Cyprus are in better condition in terms of construction and maintenance.

In-Cyprus