Eleven days after a shallow magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the Azuero Peninsula, Panama is still in its emergency phase. The Panama earthquake hit at 12:56 p.m. local time on October 9 at a depth of 12.6 kilometers, according to the USGS, with its epicenter in Herrera Province. A magnitude 6.6 quake followed, and more than 600 aftershocks have been recorded since. Shaking reached intensity IX on the Modified Mercalli scale in Tonosí, in Los Santos Province, where a hotel and several homes collapsed.
Damage across all 10 provinces
Damage has been reported in all 10 provinces and is heaviest in Los Santos, Herrera, Veraguas and Coclé. As of October 19, the national civil protection agency, SINAPROC, counted 7,933 homes damaged, including 1,952 destroyed, and 22 bridges had been reported damaged as of October 17. The colonial church of San Atanasio in La Villa de Los Santos collapsed, and the cathedral in Penonomé partially collapsed. Landslides and collapsed roads cut off communities, leaving Tonosí isolated by land. One person has died, a 68-year-old woman in Macaracas who was seriously injured when a wall collapsed and later died of her injuries, and at least 27 people were injured.
The response
Panama's government declared a state of emergency on October 10. As of October 17, 22,400 people had received assistance and 46 shelters were open. The U.S. State Department mobilized a disaster response team and pledged $5 million in humanitarian assistance, and U.S. Southern Command helicopters delivered 2,000 pounds of food to affected communities. World Central Kitchen is responding in Los Santos and Playa Venao, working with local chef partners.
With thousands of families facing damaged or destroyed homes, more help will be needed as Panama moves toward recovery. Browse our list of disaster relief organizations, and visit the Panama earthquake disaster page to donate to the organizations responding.
