Panama earthquake: 7.7-magnitude quake injures at least 27

A 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck central Panama on Friday at 12:56 pm local time (1756 GMT), the US Geological Survey said, injuring at least 27 people and collapsing buildings and roads.

No deaths have been reported so far. The shallow tremor was felt across the Central American nation of around 4.5 million people, according to the National Civil Protection System.

What happened in the Panama earthquake?

A 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck central Panama on Friday afternoon, with its epicenter 10 kilometers (six miles) from Pitaloza Arriba in Herrera province. The US Geological Survey first estimated 8.0 before revising it down. A tsunami warning for the eastern Pacific was later lifted.

The National Civil Protection System said 27 people had minor injuries across the country. The head of emergency operations, Rene Garcia, told AFP there were no reports of fatalities so far.

In Panama City, about 200 kilometers (120 miles) from the epicenter, people panicked and rushed to evacuate the city’s emblematic skyscrapers. Salomon Andion, 46, told AFP after evacuating his 15-storey building for the second time following aftershocks: “I was scared because the shaking was very strong and prolonged.” He added: “Heavy objects like dressers, the bed, and all the kitchen items were shaking.”

A video widely shared on social media showed water falling from the rooftop pool of a building more than 20 storeys tall. Another showed a bridge over the Panama Canal shaking violently but remaining upright as vehicles travelled across it.

Where did the Panama earthquake cause the most damage?

Health Minister Fernando Boyd said the most affected areas were the provinces of Herrera and Cocle, as well as Los Santos. He said the town of Tonosi in Los Santos was completely cut off. “We are trying to figure out how to get there by air, because it’s impossible by land,” Boyd said.

“We are facing a major disaster,” President Jose Raul Mulino said, adding that some roads had “completely collapsed.” Mulino travelled to Penonome to coordinate the disaster response. A church and a hotel in Penonome also suffered extensive damage, images shared on local media showed.

Former president Ricardo Martinelli posted pictures on Instagram of his house in the town of Sona in Veraguas province, which collapsed. “It was horrible, like nothing we ever experienced. My daughter was trapped in school,” Juana Alveo, a 38-year-old cashier at a store in the city of Penonome in central Cocle province, told AFP.

Benjamin Gonzalez, 52, said he was at a farm near the town of La Miel when the quake hit. When he returned home he found “many houses devastated” and “everyone terrified” in the small town square, which was left without power. His neighbour, David Castillo, told AFP that residents were choosing not to return home because they are “afraid it will happen again.”

How are authorities responding to the Panama earthquake?

Panama City’s international airport, a major hub for the region, was temporarily closed. Several flights were diverted to other airports as a precaution, according to the Civil Aeronautics Authority. The Panama Canal Authority said shipping through the channel, which connects the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, was unaffected and operating “as normal.”

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on X on Friday that he was “closely monitoring” the situation, with his office “rapidly mobilizing resources and personnel to assist,” at the Panamanian government’s request. The leaders of Colombia, Ecuador and Guatemala all sent messages of solidarity and offers of aid.

Mulino called for calm. “What happened should not be used to generate alarm and disorder,” he wrote on X, adding that he had called for a report on the damage. The education ministry announced the suspension of classes in schools nationwide.

Are earthquakes common in Panama?

Earthquakes are rare in Panama and usually occur in western Chiriqui province, bordering Costa Rica. More than 80 aftershocks, one above magnitude 6.0, were recorded by the local geosciences institute.

The Panamanian quake is at least the fourth in Latin America this year to surpass magnitude 7.0. The earlier ones were devastating back-to-back earthquakes in Venezuela’s Guaira in June and a powerful earthquake in western Colombia in August.