{"id":17831,"date":"2026-10-10T17:32:00","date_gmt":"2026-10-10T22:32:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/?p=17831"},"modified":"2026-10-09T23:57:40","modified_gmt":"2026-10-10T04:57:40","slug":"anomalous-waves-caused-coastal-flooding-after-major-quake","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/business-economy\/anomalous-waves-caused-coastal-flooding-after-major-quake\/","title":{"rendered":"Anomalous Waves Caused Coastal Flooding After Major Quake"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Seawater pushed into coastal residences in Isla Ca\u00f1as, Los Santos province, on Friday after a <a href=\"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/business-economy\/panic-in-panama-earthquake-magnitude-7-5-strikes-near-tonosi\/\" rel=\"internal\">powerful earthquake<\/a> generated <a href=\"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/crime-safety\/alarm-waterspout-formation-spotted-near-isla-grande-colon\/\" rel=\"internal\">anomalous waves<\/a> along Panama&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Azuero_Peninsula\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Azuero Peninsula<\/a>. The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) ruled out any <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Tsunami_warning_system\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">tsunami threat<\/a> despite the <strong>coastal flooding Panama<\/strong> residents experienced near the epicenter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\"><p lang=\"es\" dir=\"ltr\">Isla Ca\u00f1as en Tonos\u00ed, necesitan ayuda. @Sinaproc_Panama @presidenciapma @JoseRaulMulino @mulinomaricel https:\/\/t.co\/06LkVnjjs5<\/p>&mdash; M\u00e9lida \ud83c\udf3a\ud83d\udc3e\ud83d\udc90 (@edithfirst22) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/edithfirst22\/status\/2108679882548928687?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">October 9, 2026<\/a><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">N\u00e9stor Duque, director of the University of Panama&#8217;s Geosciences Institute, confirmed the flooding stemmed from <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Wind_wave\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">wave activity triggered<\/a> by the seismic event. No fatalities have been reported, though more than 100 aftershocks continued throughout the day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\"><p lang=\"es\" dir=\"ltr\">Tras el terremoto de magnitud 7.2 en Panam\u00e1, el Instituto de Geociencias advirti\u00f3 que las olas an\u00f3malas podr\u00edan repetirse durante varias horas en Isla Ca\u00f1as y el sur de Los Santos, mientras otras zonas del pa\u00eds tendr\u00edan un impacto menor https:\/\/t.co\/it1n5YLUjy https:\/\/t.co\/Dh9eMGuxT9<\/p>&mdash; LA CR\u00d3NICA (@lacronicacom) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/lacronicacom\/status\/2108743345304433142?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">October 10, 2026<\/a><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Wave Heights and Coastal Flooding Panama Impact<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Duque explained that waves reached between one and three meters in sectors closest to the earthquake&#8217;s epicenter on the Azuero Peninsula. The inundation affected homes situated near the shoreline in Isla Ca\u00f1as, a coastal community in Los Santos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The specialist noted that wave heights diminish significantly as they travel farther from the source. Distant points could see swells between 30 centimeters and one meter, while areas farther up the Central American coast would experience even smaller wave activity. NOAA&#8217;s assessment ruled out tsunami conditions despite the localized flooding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"instagram-media\" data-instgrm-captioned data-instgrm-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reel\/DeS571RCGXM\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" data-instgrm-version=\"14\" style=\" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:540px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);\"><div style=\"padding:16px;\"> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reel\/DeS571RCGXM\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"> <div style=\" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;\"> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 19% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;\"><svg width=\"50px\" height=\"50px\" viewBox=\"0 0 60 60\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"https:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\"><g stroke=\"none\" stroke-width=\"1\" fill=\"none\" fill-rule=\"evenodd\"><g transform=\"translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)\" fill=\"#000000\"><g><path d=\"M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631\"><\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div><div style=\"padding-top: 8px;\"> <div style=\" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;\">Ver esta publicaci\u00f3n en Instagram<\/div><\/div><div style=\"padding: 12.5% 0;\"><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;\"><div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;\"><\/div> <div style=\"background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: 8px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)\"><\/div><\/div><div style=\"margin-left: auto;\"> <div style=\" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);\"><\/div> <div style=\" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);\"><\/div><\/div><\/div> <div style=\"display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;\"> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;\"><\/div> <div style=\" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;\"><\/div><\/div><\/a><p style=\" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reel\/DeS571RCGXM\/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading\" style=\" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none;\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Una publicaci\u00f3n compartida por TVN Noticias (@tvnnoticias)<\/a><\/p><\/div><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Evacuations and Humanitarian Response<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Residents affected by the water intrusion in Isla Ca\u00f1as were relocated to El Cigua, a nearby community. Panamanian authorities planned to dispatch humanitarian aid to the area on Saturday morning. The evacuation focused on families whose homes sustained water damage from the anomalous waves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Emergency officials maintained monitoring operations as aftershocks continued. The seismic sequence produced more than 100 tremors following the main earthquake, keeping coastal communities on alert through the evening hours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<iframe src=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/maps\/embed?pb=!1m14!1m12!1m3!1d61502.8249357434!2d-80.31949461464008!3d7.402853201834648!2m3!1f0!2f0!3f0!3m2!1i1024!2i768!4f13.1!5e0!3m2!1ses!2spa!4v1791607004251!5m2!1ses!2spa\" width=\"600\" height=\"450\" style=\"border:0;\" allowfullscreen=\"\" loading=\"lazy\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\"><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Structural Damage and Regional Assessments<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Beyond the coastal flooding, the earthquake caused material damage to buildings across Panama&#8217;s interior provinces. Churches and cathedrals sustained notable structural impacts, according to official reports. At least 15 people suffered minor injuries during the event.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\"><p lang=\"es\" dir=\"ltr\">El Instituto de Geociencias de la Universidad de Panam\u00e1 inform\u00f3 que el ingreso de agua a viviendas cercanas a la costa de Isla Ca\u00f1as, en la provincia de Los Santos, se produjo por olas an\u00f3malas registradas tras el fuerte sismo que sacudi\u00f3 al pa\u00eds este viernes.\n\nVideo: Fuente Externa\n\nM\u00e1s informaci\u00f3n en nuestro peri\u00f3dico: https:\/\/t.co\/S3dCiis3j9\n#debate.do #elperiodicodelasmayorias<\/p>&mdash; debate.do (@midebate) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/midebate\/status\/2108722936089600099?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">October 10, 2026<\/a><\/blockquote>\n<script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Fire stations and roadways also recorded damage as emergency crews worked to assess the full scope of destruction. The combination of seismic shaking and subsequent wave activity created a dual hazard scenario for communities along the Azuero coastline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Geosciences experts continue tracking aftershock patterns while local authorities coordinate damage assessments. The absence of casualties marks a critical outcome for a seismic event of this magnitude, though recovery efforts for displaced families remain ongoing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<iframe width=\"560\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/DZXl6YSFAko?cc_lang_pref=en&#038;hl=en&#038;cc_load_policy=1\" title=\"YouTube video player\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Seawater pushed into coastal residences in Isla Ca\u00f1as, Los Santos province, on Friday after a powerful earthquake generated anomalous waves along Panama&#8217;s Azuero Peninsula. The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) ruled out any tsunami threat despite the coastal flooding Panama residents experienced near the epicenter. Isla Ca\u00f1as en Tonos\u00ed, necesitan ayuda. @Sinaproc_Panama @presidenciapma<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":17833,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_sitemap_exclude":false,"_sitemap_priority":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[30,31,35],"tags":[7427,2877,7426,372,50],"class_list":["post-17831","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-business-economy","category-crime-safety","category-travel-transportation-tourism","tag-anomalous-waves","tag-earthquake","tag-earthquake-panama","tag-flooding","tag-panama"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17831","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17831"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17831\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17834,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17831\/revisions\/17834"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17833"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17831"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17831"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/expat-times.com\/panama\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17831"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}