巴拿马 7.7 级强震：建筑坍塌、机场一度停运，总统宣布全国动员
巴拿马中部10月9日发生7.7级强震。美国地质调查局（USGS）测定，地震发生于协调世界时17时56分（美西时间上午10时56分），震中位于皮塔洛萨阿里巴（Pitaloza Arriba）西南西约12公里，震源深度12.6公里，属浅源地震。USGS最初报告震级为8.0级，随后修订为7.7级；震中一带最大烈度估计约8.7度，USGS的PAGER灾情评估系统发出红色警报，显示可能出现重大人员伤亡与经济损失。目前已收到590多份震感报告。
灾情集中在巴拿马中部省份。佩诺诺梅（Penonomé）一座教堂的钟楼与一栋政府建筑受损，Dos Continentes酒店部分坍塌，造成1人受伤；托诺西（Tonosí）有酒店和民宅倒塌；海滩度假地Playa Venao一栋多层建筑垮塌，压住下方车辆。首都巴拿马城高楼剧烈摇晃，数百人疏散到街上；地铁两条线路停运，教育部宣布全国停课一天，托库门国际机场一度暂停运营进行安全评估。巴拿马运河运营正常，未受影响。
总统穆利诺（José Raúl Mulino）宣布全国动员，并亲赴灾区协调救援。巴拿马民防部门表示，灾情主要集中在贝拉瓜斯（Veraguas）、埃雷拉（Herrera）和洛斯桑托斯（Los Santos）三省，搜救与损失评估仍在进行。
主震之后余震不断，里奥格兰德（Río Grande）以西发生6.6级余震，另有多次5级以上余震。美国海啸预警系统最初对巴拿马及中南美太平洋沿岸发出海啸威胁，随后宣布威胁解除。值得南加州居民注意的是，美国国家气象局（NWS）洛杉矶办公室已明确表示：此次地震对加州沿岸没有海啸威胁。
资料来源：美国地质调查局（USGS）、CNN、USA Today、巴拿马民防部门、美国国家气象局（NWS）。
M7.7 Quake Rocks Panama: Buildings Collapse, Airport Halts Flights as President Mobilizes Nationwide Response
A magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck central Panama on Friday, October 9. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) placed the epicenter about 12 km (7.5 miles) west-southwest of Pitaloza Arriba, at a shallow depth of 12.6 km (7.8 miles). The quake struck at 17:56 UTC (10:56 a.m. PDT). USGS initially reported the magnitude as 8.0 before revising it down to 7.7; maximum shaking intensity near the epicenter was estimated at MMI 8.7, and the agency's PAGER system issued a red alert, indicating that significant casualties and economic losses are likely. More than 590 felt reports have been submitted.
Damage was concentrated in Panama's central provinces. In Penonomé, a church bell tower and a government building were damaged, and part of the Dos Continentes hotel collapsed, injuring one person. In Tonosí, a hotel and homes collapsed, and in the beach resort of Playa Venao a multi-story building came down on top of vehicles. In Panama City, high-rises swayed and hundreds of people evacuated into the streets. Both metro lines suspended service, the Education Ministry closed schools nationwide for the day, and Tocumen International Airport temporarily halted operations for a safety assessment. The Panama Canal continued operating normally.
President José Raúl Mulino declared a nationwide mobilization and traveled to the disaster zone to coordinate the response. Panama's civil defense agency said damage was concentrated in the provinces of Veraguas, Herrera and Los Santos, and that search-and-rescue and damage assessments were still under way.
Aftershocks followed the mainshock, including a magnitude 6.6 quake west of Río Grande and several others above magnitude 5. The U.S. tsunami warning system initially issued a tsunami threat for Panama and other Central and South American Pacific coasts, then announced the threat had passed. For Southern California readers: the National Weather Service office in Los Angeles has stated plainly that the quake poses no tsunami threat to the California coast.
Sources: U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), CNN, USA Today, Panama's civil defense agency, and the National Weather Service (NWS).
图片来源：Wikimedia Commons · Panama Canal Miraflores Locks.jpg · CC BY-SA 3.0