Panama Declares State of Emergency After Powerful Earthquakes Damage Homes

EPA

The damaged San Atanasio church in La Villa de Los Santos, Panama, on Saturday.

Panama’s government declared a state of emergency on Saturday after two powerful earthquakes struck the country on Friday, triggering more than 100 aftershocks and damaging homes and infrastructure across the country.

Authorities reported no deaths linked to the magnitude 7.7 and 6.6 earthquakes but confirmed damage in all 10 provinces and two Indigenous territories. The tremors toppled buildings near the epicentre and prompted evacuations.

Seismologists recorded more than 100 aftershocks, including tremors measuring magnitudes 5.8, 5.5 and 5.2.

According to the US Geological Survey, the first earthquake was centred about 10 kilometres south-west of Pitaloza Arriba, a remote community in the central province of Herrera. It struck at a depth of 10 kilometres and was also felt in neighbouring Colombia.

Juan Carlos Orillac, Panama’s presidential minister, announced the state of emergency at a news conference in Panama City. He said homes, schools, healthcare facilities, roads and hotels were among the damaged properties and infrastructure.

Malitzie Rivera, deputy director of the National Civil Protection System, said 27 people had been reported injured, with injuries ranging from minor to moderate.

The worst damage was concentrated in the central provinces of Veraguas, Herrera, Coclé and Los Santos.

According to the Civil Protection agency, around 420 homes and a similar number of public schools had been damaged. Seven hotels, at least 13 churches and nine bridges were also affected.

In La Villa de Los Santos, a colonial-era town about 64 kilometres north-east of the epicentre, homes and a historic Catholic church collapsed. Residents who had spent the night outdoors were awaiting government guidance on what to do next.

Authorities reported no missing people on Saturday, although some communities remained cut off by landslides and damaged roads.

Carlos Valdés, head of the seismology department at Mexico’s National Autonomous University, said Panama’s apparent avoidance of widespread fatalities could be partly attributed to its strict building regulations, particularly those governing skyscraper construction in the capital.

Messages of support and offers of assistance arrived from across the region following the earthquakes. On Friday, Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino thanked fellow Latin American leaders, saying he had spoken with the presidents of Chile, Uruguay and Guatemala, among others.

The US Department of State said on Saturday that it had deployed a disaster response team to assist local authorities with search-and-rescue expertise and aerial and ground assessments. Washington also pledged $5 million in humanitarian assistance.

The US military’s Southern Command said two helicopters, supported by the State Department’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, had delivered 2,000 pounds (907 kilogrammes) of food to people affected by the earthquakes.

Source: The Guardian



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