Very strong earthquake hits Panama's southern coast

A very strong earthquake, rated 7.6 in strength, hit Panama's southern coast on 9 October 2026, the US Geological Survey reports. The shaking was centered about 14km southwest of Pitaloza Arriba. Panama's Institute of Geosciences, the country's earthquake experts, says it struck just before 1pm local time near Tonosí, with a smaller but still strong 6.0 shake following at 1:22pm.