A magnitude 7.7 earthquake hit south-central Panama on Friday, damaging hospitals, shuttering schools and prompting the United States to mobilize aid at the Panamanian government’s request. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the State Department is “rapidly mobilizing resources and personnel to assist.” He didn’t say how many Americans would be sent, what they’d do or when they’d arrive.
“The United States stands with the people of Panama,” Rubio wrote on X. The U.S. Embassy in Panama City said it was checking on visitors and staff, and urged U.S. citizens to enroll in the State Department’s free Smart Traveler Enrollment Program. The department runs a 24-hour hotline: +1-202-501-4444 from abroad, +1-888-407-4747 from the United States and Canada.
The quake struck at 12:56 p.m. local time on Friday, Oct. 9. The U.S. Geological Survey placed its epicentre 12 kilometres west-south-west of Pitaloza Arriba, at a depth of about 12.6 kilometres. The University of Panama’s Institute of Geosciences first measured it at 7.2, then revised it to 7.5. Aftershocks kept coming: a magnitude 6.6 at 3:25 p.m., a magnitude 6.0 at 11:14 p.m., and 107 in all by shortly after 6 p.m., according to the institute.
Hospitals and Schools Take the Hit
The damage to public services is already clear. Panama’s Health Ministry, Minsa, reported 17 affected health facilities: six hospitals, eight health centres and three primary-care centres. It said it had no reports of deaths or people seriously hurt. At Hospital Santo Tomás, a large public hospital in Panama City, inspectors found structural damage on the fifth floor of the trauma area. Authorities fully evacuated the Oriente Chiricano hospital in San Félix, Chiriquí province.
Schools took a hit, too. Education Minister Ventura Vega said 188 schools nationwide were affected and classes would remain suspended until further notice. He planned to visit Coclé, Herrera and Veraguas on Saturday to assess whether pupils could return Monday, Oct. 12. That decision hasn’t been made.
In Penonomé, the capital of Coclé province, part of a church tower fell and a hotel suffered severe damage. President José Raúl Mulino, a conservative lawyer in office since July 2024, visited the town and urged people to stay calm. He promised more water, food and diapers for affected areas starting Saturday, Oct. 10, and said the National Police were leading coordination and security on the ground.
International Lenders Step In
Panama isn’t relying on Washington alone. CAF, the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean, donated US$250,000 for humanitarian needs and offered a natural-disaster credit line of up to US$50 million, to be channelled in coordination with the Economy Ministry. “Today we stand with the people of Panama, who have been affected by the earthquake,” said CAF executive president Sergio Díaz-Granados.
Economy Minister Felipe Chapman’s ministry contacted the Inter-American Development Bank, CAF, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, and reached out to the Central American Bank for Economic Integration. Chapman gave no amounts or terms. Mulino thanked several Latin American presidents who called Friday to offer help.
The Economic Warning
The USGS loss model, PAGER, issued a red alert for economic losses, estimating them at 3% to 30% of Panama’s gross domestic product. That’s a computer estimate, not a damage count. But the report noted that past events at this level required a national or international response.
Tocumen airport reopened Friday afternoon and Copa Airlines resumed flights, allowing passengers booked for Oct. 9 or 10 to rebook free for travel through Oct. 31, though delays are possible. The Panama Canal Authority said operations continued normally and later reported minor damage to four office buildings on the Pacific side, with no effect on ship transits. Panama’s civil protection agency, Sinaproc, urged people to avoid rumours and stay away from visibly damaged buildings as aftershocks continued.
Officials haven’t published a final count of injured people or damaged homes, and they haven’t put a price on the damage. No deaths had been reported by Friday evening, but figures could change as teams reach rural areas.
Why This Matters: A quake with no reported deaths can still leave lasting harm. Damaged hospitals, including a compromised trauma unit and a fully evacuated regional facility, strain the public health system just when people may need it most. Closed schools put children’s learning on hold. And a projected economic hit of 3% to 30% of GDP shows how a disaster can ripple through an entire country. The speed of the response, from Washington to regional lenders such as CAF to neighbouring presidents, shows how much disaster recovery depends on cooperation across borders and public institutions. Rural communities, where assessments remain incomplete, may have the most to lose if help arrives unevenly.