A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck near Tonosí in Panama’s Los Santos province at about 10:50 a.m. local time on Saturday, 31 October, according to revised data from the University of Panama’s Institute of Geosciences reported by TVN Panamá.
The institute’s revised estimate placed the epicentre about 20 kilometres north-east of Tonosí, at a depth of 10 kilometres. The quake was initially reported at magnitude 6.1 before being revised to 5.9, TVN said. Other agencies gave lower estimates: Minuto60 reported that the US Geological Survey measured it at 5.2, while the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre put it at 5.7.
The shaking was felt in Panama City. The Metro temporarily evacuated passengers and suspended services on Lines 1 and 2 as a precaution, then restored both lines, according to TVN Panamá.
Panama’s National Civil Protection System was monitoring the situation. TVN reported that authorities had received no reports of injuries or property damage at the time of its report.
Infobae reported that a separate magnitude 5.8 tremor was recorded one second before the 5.9 event, with the two movements located at different points near Tonosí.
The tremors occurred amid continuing seismic activity following the 9 October earthquake. TVN described the latest movement as part of that aftershock sequence and reported that more than 1,000 aftershocks had been recorded. The latest reports cited here did not provide a complete assessment of possible damage beyond the initial reports of none.
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