Five earthquakes off the coast of Larnaca? We check weekend reports.

In the Cyprus region, more seismic events have been recorded in recent days than the five earthquakes reported by media outlets in the north of the island. VolcanoDiscovery's tally shows 32 records over seven days for the selected area covering Cyprus and its surroundings. These include locations off the southern coast of Turkey, so this number cannot be interpreted as 32 earthquakes on the island itself.

The provided summary includes entries corresponding to five events described off the coast of Larnaca on the night of October 9-10. However, their magnitudes vary between publications, and one VolcanoDiscovery entry is marked as unconfirmed. The directory shows broader activity in the region, but requires distinguishing the location, source, and status of individual events.

Earthquakes in the Cyprus area. More than five entries

The information about five tremors concerned the period from Friday evening, October 9, until Saturday morning, October 10It wasn't a compilation of all the events in the region for the entire week.

The VolcanoDiscovery directory also includes other entries from these dates and from October 11 and 12. Some are described broadly as "Cyprus Region," while others have more specific locations around Paphos, Limassol, and Paralimni.

The list also includes incidents in the Silifke and Mersin regions in Turkey. This is important when interpreting the number. 32 entries: the result covers a wider search area, not just the territory of Cyprus.

The highest reported magnitude was 3.7

Among the entries shown from October 9–12, the highest magnitude — 3,7 — attributed to the event of October 9 at 22:49 Cyprus timeAnother shock, oh 23:15, described by magnitude 3,3 and located approximately 28 kilometers east of Larnaca.

Both entries contain reports from users who felt the tremor. Such reports supplement information about the event but do not replace seismological measurements.

What does the VolcanoDiscovery ranking show?

32 entries

Seven days for the selected area. The result also includes events near Turkey.

Magnitude 3.7

Highest value in entries shown from October 9-12. Event from October 9 at 10:49 PM.

The list includes various locations and event statuses. The number of entries does not indicate the number of earthquakes felt by residents of Cyprus.

Same hours, different magnitudes

Kıbrıs Postası, citing the service operating in the north of the island, reported the magnitudes for the first two events 3.4 and 3.5. VolcanoDiscovery presents values for the corresponding hours 3.7 and 3.3.

The timing suggests these are likely the same shocks. Differences also exist in some of the later entries and their depth.

Without reading the measurement sources and update history of each event, it's impossible to determine the source of the discrepancies. The two portals shouldn't be treated as two independent measurements—they could be using the same data.

Particular caution is required when entering October 10 at 04:38 Cyprus time. VolcanoDiscovery shows its magnitude 1.9 with a question mark and marked "unconfirmed".

More entries from Saturday and Sunday

On Saturday, October 10, the catalog also presents an event about 13:26, of magnitude 2,1It may correspond to reports of a possible quake described by SigmaLive, but the general location of "Cyprus Region" does not allow for a certain connection.

For Sunday, October 11, there is, among other things, an entry about the magnitude 2,1 from the hour 06:30 UTC, That is 09:30 in Cyprus, near Paphos. In the evening, at 21:56, an event of magnitude was reported 2,7, about 35 kilometers southeast of Paralimni.

Another entry, from Monday October 12 at 01:48, has a magnitude 2,0 and general location within the Cyprus region.

The times require careful reading. The directory mixes local time with UTC—on the dates in question, three hours must be added to UTC to obtain the time in force in Cyprus.

The lack of a message does not mean the absence of an earthquake

During our verification, we were unable to locate a statement from the Department of Geological Surveys of the Republic of Cyprus confirming a specific series of five events near Larnaca. We also failed to decipher its seismological catalog.

This doesn't mean, however, that the Republic's services didn't record these tremors. The VolcanoDiscovery report provides additional information, although the details of the sources of individual measurements remain to be compared.

There's also no basis for concluding that a major earthquake is imminent based solely on the number of small events. The USGS emphasizes that there's no reliable method for predicting its exact timing, location, or magnitude.

The most important conclusion from the weekend's news is simple: The five tremors reported near Larnaca are only part of a broader set of activity in the region. However, not all entries concern Cyprus itself and not all have the same confirmation status.

Sources: VolcanoDiscovery, Kıbrıs Postası, SigmaLive, CRISISINFO, USGS.