A powerful, shallow earthquake tore through southern Panama on Friday afternoon, toppling a historic cathedral tower, crushing cars under a collapsed resort building, and sending tsunami warnings rippling across five countries in one of the strongest quakes to hit the region this year.

The U.S. Geological Survey measured the quake at a preliminary magnitude of 7.7, striking just 12 km (about 7 miles) southwest of the remote Pacific-coast community of Pitaloza Arriba at a shallow depth of roughly 12.6 km — a combination that tends to maximize shaking at the surface. The USGS flagged the quake with a red PAGER alert, its highest warning level, cautioning that "some casualties are possible and extensive damage is probable." Two significant aftershocks, measuring 6.6 and 5.8, rattled the same area within hours.

Buildings down, nerves frayed

Video verified by multiple outlets showed the steeple of a historic church partially collapsing and a building facade crumbling in Penonomé, roughly 70 miles from the epicenter. In the resort town of Playa Venao, a multi-story building collapsed onto several parked cars, according to Al Jazeera. Panama's Civil Protection agency said the worst damage was concentrated in the central provinces of Veraguas, Herrera and Los Santos, with no damage reported in Panama City — though residents there poured into the streets as the ground shook, and the capital's metro suspended two lines and evacuated stations as a precaution.

Panama's international airport was briefly closed, classes were canceled nationwide for the rest of the day, and the national water utility reported outages at several treatment plants tied to quake-related power failures. The Panama Canal Authority said the waterway — one of the world's busiest shipping arteries — kept operating normally while crews inspected for damage.

"We felt it very strongly. It knocked things over in the kitchen, but we're okay, though we're very scared."

That was the account of Herrera province resident Rosendo Dominguez, 60, relayed by the Associated Press and reported by Euronews. President José Raúl Mulino urged the public not to panic, writing on social media that "what happened should not be used to cause alarm or disorder," while directing his government to detail the quake's effects and mobilizing relief resources.

The U.S. National Weather Service issued tsunami warnings for coastal Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Nicaragua and Guatemala, and Chile's navy issued its own advisory as a precaution. By Friday evening, the U.S. Tsunami Warning System said the threat of significant waves had passed, though officials in the region continued monitoring conditions.

No deaths or injuries had been confirmed as of Friday evening, but the picture remains fluid in the hours after a quake this size. Panama has largely avoided the catastrophic quake tolls seen elsewhere in Latin America this year — twin earthquakes killed more than 6,400 people in Venezuela in June, and a magnitude-7.4 quake left roughly 300 dead in Colombia in August, according to CNN's reporting — but officials cautioned the full toll from Friday's shaking may not be known for some time.