Small magnitude 3.4 earthquake 52 km southeast of Vlore, Albania

A magnitude 3.4 earthquake near Vlore, Bashkia Vlorë, Qarku i Vlores, Albania, was reported just 11 minutes ago by the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC), considered one of the key international agencies monitoring seismic activity worldwide. The earthquake occurred at a very shallow depth of 5. km beneath the epicenter in the early afternoon on Friday, September 18th, 2026, at 3:06 pm local time. The exact magnitude, epicenter, and depth of the quake might be revised within the next few hours or minutes as seismologists review data and refine their calculations, or as other agencies issue their reports.
Our monitoring service identified a second report from the Seismological Laboratory of the University of Athens (UOA), which listed the quake at magnitude 3.3. A third agency, the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki Geophysical Lab. (AUTH), reported the same quake at magnitude 3.2.
Based on the preliminary seismic data, the quake should not have caused any significant damage but was probably felt by many people as a light vibration in the area of the epicenter.
Weak shaking might have been felt in Himare (pop. 4,600), located 9 km from the epicenter; Dhermi (pop. 1,800), 19 km away; Gjirokaster (pop. 23,400), 25 km away; Brataj (pop. 2,800), 25 km away; and Delvine (pop. 6,200), 26 km away.
Other towns or cities near the epicenter where the quake might have been felt as very weak shaking include Tepelene (pop. 12,000), located 27 km from the epicenter; Sarande (pop. 22,600), 27 km away; and Mesopotam (pop. 2,800), 29 km away. In Vlore (pop. 115,300, 52 km away), the quake was probably not felt.


Earthquake data:
Date & time: Sep 18, 2026 03:06 pm (GMT +2) local time (18 Sep 2026 13:06 GMT)
Magnitude: 3.5
Hypocenter depth: 0.00 km
Epicenter coordinates: 40.12°N / 19.92°E (Bashkia Himare, Qarku i Vlores, Albania)
Primary data source: EMSC
https://www.volcanodiscovery.com/earthquakes/news/357786/Small-magnitude-34-earthquake-52-km-southeast-of-Vlore-Albania.html