2022 Cyprus earthquake

Magnitude 6.6 earthquake in the Mediterranean Sea

35°13′37″N 31°56′38″E / 35.227°N 31.944°E / 35.227; 31.944FaultCyprus arcTypeThrustAreas affectedCyprus, Turkey, Egypt, Lebanon, Israel, GreeceTotal damageMinorMax. intensityMMI VI (Strong)Tsunami10 cm (0.33 ft)^[2]Casualties3 dead, 1 injured

An earthquake struck west of Paphos, Cyprus on 11 January 2022, with a moment magnitude of 6.6.^[3] The earthquake was the largest tremor to occur in the Mediterranean Sea since the 2003 Boumerdès earthquake,^[4] and the largest to occur in Cyprus since 1996.^[5]

Tectonic setting

Cyprus is located in a complex zone of a boundary between the Anatolian and African Plates. These two plates are colliding along the Cyprus Arc, a tectonic boundary that runs south of the island. This subduction zone is offset by a small transform fault known as the Paphos Transform Fault. This plate boundary, along with the Dead Sea Transform and East Anatolian Fault Leads to motion of the African and Arabian Plates.^[6] This has resulted in moderately destructive, occasional earthquakes, including a magnitude 7.0–7.5 in 1222 which severely impacted the island and generated a large tsunami.

Earthquake

The earthquake was the largest in Cyprus since 1996,^[5] and was felt across the island as well as Turkey, Greece, Egypt, Israel and Lebanon.^[7]^[8] The earthquake had a thrust focal mechanism and was centred about 50 km (31 mi) from the coast.^[3]

Impact

Cyprus

Several structures received minor damage and objects fell from shelves in the Paphos and Lefke Districts.^[9]^[10]^[11] In Kallepeia, at least 1,586 chickens were killed in stampede caused by them panicking.^[12]

Egypt

In Damietta, the earthquake may have led to the collapse of a four-storey apartment several hours later, killing three people and injuring another.^[1] Two of the victims were men while another body had yet to be identified.^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c "بعد ساعات من الزلزال.. قتلى وجرحى بانهيار بناء في مصر". Al Arabiya (in Arabic). 11 January 2022. Archived from the original on 17 February 2022. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
^ "M 6.6 in Cyprus on 11 Jan 2022 01:07 UTC". Global Disaster Alert and Coordination System.
^ ^a ^b "M 6.6 - 48 km WNW of Pólis, Cyprus". earthquake.usgs.gov. 11 January 2022. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
^ "Earthquake map results". United States Geological Survey.
^ ^a ^b "M 6.8 - 36 km SW of Paphos, Cyprus". United States Geological Survey.
^ Eleftheria Papadimitriou, Vassilios Karakostas (September 2006). "Earthquake generation in Cyprus revealed by the evolving stress field". Tectonophysics. 423 (1–4): 61. Bibcode:2006Tectp.423...61P. doi:10.1016/j.tecto.2006.03.014.
^ "6.6-magnitude Cyprus earthquake shakes eastern Mediterranean". Gulf Today.
^ "6.6-magnitude quake jolts Cyprus, felt in Egypt and Lebanon". Al Arabiya.
^ "Only small damages from this morning's strong earthquake". in-cyprus.philenews.com. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
^ "Powerful earthquake hits off the coast of Cyprus". bnonews.com. 11 January 2022. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
^ "Sİvil Savunma: "Şimdiye kadar deprem kaynaklı bina hasarı ihbarı almadık"". yeniduzen.com (in Turkish). 11 January 2022. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
^ "1586 chickens killed due to the earthquake". in-cyprus.philenews.com. Archived from the original on 11 January 2022. Retrieved 11 January 2022.