A massive magnitude 7.7 earthquake has hit Panama, damaging buildings and prompting a wide-ranging tsunami warning for neighbouring countries.
About 4.6 million people felt moderate to severe shaking as a result of the quake, and the US Geological Survey says the effects were “likely to be widespread”.
The full extent of the damage it has caused is not yet clear, nor whether there have been any casualties as a result.
The earthquake comes just three days before Panama was scheduled to hold a national evacuation drill for dealing with a major earthquake.
It also follows devastating earthquakes in Colombia and Venezuela earlier this year.
