Magnitude 7.7 quake of October 9, 2026 near Pitaloza Arriba on the Azuero Peninsula. Image Credit: Ship & Bunker / Map data: Natural Earth, USGS

• Quake struck at 12:56 local time on Friday near Pitaloza Arriba, Herrera province, about 200 km south-west of the canal
• Panama Canal Authority says operations continue normally while technical teams inspect facilities; 40 ships were waiting to transit
• Tsunami warning for Panama's Pacific coast issued, then lifted
• Damage concentrated in Veraguas, Herrera and Los Santos; no casualties reported at press time

A magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck Panama's Azuero Peninsula on Friday afternoon, shaking buildings in Panama City and prompting a tsunami warning along the Pacific coast, but the Panama Canal Authority says ship transits have continued while its teams check the waterway for damage.

The US Geological Survey put the quake at magnitude 7.7, revised down from an initial 8.0, at a depth of about 12.6 km, with the epicentre near the rural community of Pitaloza Arriba in Herrera province, roughly 200 km south-west of the canal, while Panama's own geosciences institute measured it at 7.2.

It hit at 12:56 local time (17:56 UTC) and was followed by aftershocks of 5.8 and 5.5, according to the USGS.

The canal authority said in a statement that its operations were continuing normally, that it had activated its emergency protocols, and that technical teams were inspecting its facilities for possible damage without any effect on vessel transits.

Its priority was the safety of its staff and of the ships and crews in the waterway, and it would share verified information as the assessments progressed, it added.

40 ships, 37 of them with bookings, were waiting to transit at the time, Spanish news agency EFE reported.

The US Pacific Tsunami Warning Center initially warned that waves of one to three metres were possible along parts of Panama's coast within three hours, but that warning was later lifted.

Panama's civil protection agency Sinaproc said damage was concentrated in the central provinces of Veraguas, Herrera and Los Santos, with none reported in the capital, according to CBS News, and no casualties had been reported by press time.

Panama sold 427,985 mt of marine fuel in July across 629 bunker calls, according to the Panama Maritime Authority.