Powerful magnitude 7.7 earthquake hits Panama, damaging buildings
Tsunami warnings are issued for neighbouring countries as videos of destruction circulate online.
A powerful magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck Panama, causing damage to buildings and triggering a tsunami warning for neighboring countries. Around 4.6 million people experienced moderate to severe shaking, according to the US Geological Survey. The tremor, which occurred just before 15:00 local time, was centered about 6.2 miles (10km) from the town of Pitaloza Arriba in south-central Panama.
A series of shallow aftershocks followed the initial quake, which occurred at a depth of just 12km, increasing the likelihood of severe surface effects. While the full extent of the damage remains unclear and no casualties have been reported, many residents were evacuated from buildings in Panama City, located 200km (124 miles) away.
This earthquake comes just three days before Panama was set to conduct a nationwide evacuation drill in preparation for a major earthquake, and follows devastating earthquakes in Colombia and Venezuela earlier this year.
Written by urgent.news from BBC World's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
