Massive earthquake strikes Panama at magnitude 7.6, tsunami threat issued
Authorities lifted tsunami alerts after the quake, and officials reported no immediate casualties as aftershocks continued to rattle central Panama.
- On Friday, October 9, 2026, a powerful 7.6 magnitude earthquake struck southern Panama near Pitaloza Arriba at a shallow 10 km depth, shaking buildings in Panama City and triggering widespread evacuations across the country.
- Panama lies along the 'Ring of Fire,' a 25,000-mile arc of fault lines where seismic activity recurs; this marks the fourth Latin American earthquake exceeding magnitude 7.0 this year.
- National Civil Protection Service official Omar Smith reported damage concentrated in Veraguas, Herrera, and Los Santos, including a collapsed cathedral tower in Penonomé and damaged hotel facade, with no casualties immediately reported.
- The U.S. Tsunami Warning System issued alerts for nine countries warning of potential 3-meter waves, while the Panama Canal Authority confirmed operations on the critical trade waterway continue normally.
- Seismologists recorded more than 45 aftershocks as Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino called for calm on X, urging citizens to avoid alarm while rescue teams continue assessing the affected provinces.
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918 Articles
Panama shaken by large earthquake and its aftershocks
An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.7 hit Panama on Friday, causing the collapse of about a dozen structures and shaking the capital of the Central American country, according to the U.S. Geological Survey and videos posted on social media.
Panama. Two earthquakes of magnitude 7.7 and 6.6, as well as about 20 replicas, shook Panama yesterday and severely damaged buildings and forced evictions in the central region of the country; no fatal casualties were reported.
Hospitals had to be evacuated and both runways of the international airport were closed.
A powerful 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck Panama on Friday, damaging buildings and forcing evacuations. Footage published by local media showed the collapse of a cathedral and part of a hotel facade falling on a car in Penonomé, in the central part of the country. According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the epicenter of the earthquake was near the southern tip of Panama, about 12 kilometers west-southwest of the remote communit…
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