“The ground is still shaking; this is the first time in my life I’ve seen something like this happen.” With these words, a Greek resident of Panama City described the events surrounding the extremely powerful 7.7 on the Richter scale, which had triggered an alert earlier in the Central American country.

“We’re all fine. I’m 41 years old, and this is the first time I’ve ever seen anything like what I saw today. The earthquake started at 1:00 p.m. local time, while everyone was at work. I was on the sixth floor of a building in my office. We all went down the stairs. “Everyone calmly evacuated the apartment buildings,” Dimitris Kosmas, who lives and works in Panama City, initially told MEGA.

First images of the damage from the Panama earthquake #earthquake #Terremoto #panama #sismo #temblor https://t.co/zpymnIyo9j

— Tendencia en X HOY (@TendenciaenXHoy) October 9, 2026

In fact, as he says, the epicenter of the earthquake was in a small town 3 hours away from Panama City. “We felt it very strongly here, too, but they say there’s extensive damage where the earthquake struck. The town is called Herrera; on the map, it’s in the center of Panama,” he noted.

As for how he reacted at that moment, Mr. Kosmas revealed that he immediately told his colleagues to calmly evacuate the building. 

In San Francisco, Panama City, the earthquake was felt so strongly that the buildings were swaying to such an extent that the water in the swimming pools was overflowing, as shown in the video I took from my home. https://t.co/T1QsMF2uuR

— BVMG (@mwbv824) October 9, 2026

SEE ALSO: 7.7-Magnitude Earthquake in Panama: Buildings and Roads Collapsed; the Canal and International Airport Are Operating Normally

Buildings and roads collapsed

The powerful earthquake struck southern Panama, causing extensive property damage in some areas near the epicenter.

The country’s president, José Raúl Mulino, described the situation as a “major disaster,” noting that buildings had collapsed and sections of the road network had sustained extremely severe damage.

He made special mention of roads that, as he said, “collapsed completely” in the areas hardest hit by the earthquake.

Images from the affected areas show destruction to homes, public buildings, and infrastructure, while power outages were reported in six provinces across the country.

According to initial estimates by the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the earthquake measured 7.7 on the Richter scale and had a focal depth of approximately 12.6 kilometers. Panamanian authorities put the magnitude at 7.2.

Despite the magnitude of the quake and the resulting damage, as of Friday evening, no fatalities had been reported, while the relevant agencies continued to assess the damage and inspect the affected areas.

Source: protothema.gr