A 4.5 magnitude quake jolted Cyprus early on Friday, the third to be felt on the island this month, with the department of geological survey urging the public to remain calm.

There were no reports of injuries or damage.

The 4.5 magnitude quake was recorded two minutes before 6am with an epicentre in the sea of Cyprus, 50 kilometres west-northwest of Polis Chrysochous at a depth of 23 kilometres.

In his statements to the Cyprus News Agency, the Deputy Director of the Department of Geological Survey Christodoulos Hadjigeorgiou said the quake took place “approximately the same area where the January 11 earthquake occurred, northwest of Peyia and west of Polis Chrysochous”.

He added the department is examining whether it is a new earthquake or an aftershock.

An earlier department’s announcement said, “it is assessed as an aftershock of the strong earthquake of 6.5 magnitude of 11 January 2022.”

A 5.3 magnitude quake was recorded on January 5, again in the same area.

The earthquake was felt in the Paphos district, slightly in Limassol and Nicosia districts and the eastern Cyprus.

Hadjigeorgiou explained the island is situated at an earthquake-prone area and quakes can occur at any time and advised people to stay alert and calm in such cases.

Experiencing regular earthquake tremors which are not destructive is positive, Hadjigeorgiou added, as this means the energy is being released without it creating a big earthquake.

Meanwhile, the civil defence contacted the district administrations of Paphos and Limassol as well as police and fire service who did not report any damage.

They also explained the role of the civil defence in case of an earthquake.

Civil defence spokeswoman Olivia Michaelidou told the Cyprus News Agency that in the event of an earthquake they activate the special national plan “Enceladus” which includes all the procedures followed by all the services involved, about 40 in total, to deal with the effects of an earthquake.

Teams of the civil defence are also activated assist in various incidents, such as search and rescue of people under rubble, to accommodate people that may need temporary residence, or to provide first aid and to generally provide support to the affected people, she said.