Shallow M5.6 Earthquake hit in the North Pacific Ocean 193km from David (Panama) on Wednesday Evening.

Written by Earthquakelist.org on December 17th, 2025. Last updated December 18th, 2025.

A shallow and significant M5.6 earthquake struck in the North Pacific Ocean 193 kilometer from David, Panama in the evening of Wednesday December 17th, 2025. Around 0.8 million people have been exposed to shaking.

Earthquake Summary

This earthquake hit under water in the North Pacific Ocean, 112 kilometers (70 mi) off the coast of Panama, 193 kilometer south of David in Chiriquí. The center of this earthquake had a very shallow depth of 10 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Dec 17, 2025 06:07PM (Panama Time) - Dec 17, 2025 23:07 Universal Time.
Location:	193 km south of David, Chiriquí, Panama. Coordinates 6°41'57"N 82°32'27"W.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 5.6 Detected by 50 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.044 .
Depth:	10 km (6 mi) A very shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	IV Light On the Modified Mercalli Scale.
Tsunami Risk:	Low tsunami risk Earthquakes under MAG-6.5 do not usually cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here.

Minimal impact predicted

Based on scientific estimates by the US Geographic Survey (USGS), the risk of high fatalities for this earthquake is classified at level GREEN (low). They expect an 65% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 fatalities, and a 96% chance that the number of fatalities falls no higher than 10.

The USGS classifies the economic impact of this earthquake at level GREEN (low). They expect an 65% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 million US Dollars in economic damage and impact, and a 96% chance that the economic impact of this earthquake falls no higher than 10 million USD.

Roughly 0.8 million people exposed to shaking

This earthquake may have been felt by around 0.8 million people. That is the expected population size of the area exposed to a level of shaking of II or higher on the Modified Mercalli scale according to the USGS.

An estimated 771,200 people were exposed to level III. At this level, weak shaking and probably no damage can be expected.

People in 2 countries have been exposed to shaking. In Panama , around 0.8 million people, with impact levels up to III (weak shaking, probably no damage). People were exposed to shaking in Costa Rica as well.

People	MMI Level	Shaking	Damage
0	I	Not noticable	None
12,730	II	Very weak	None
771,200	III	Weak	Probably none
0	IV	Light	Likely none
0	V	Moderate	Very light
0	VI	Strong	Light
0	VII	Very Strong	Moderate
0	VIII	Severe	Moderate to heavy
0	IX	Violent	Heavy
0	X	Extreme	Very heavy

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake may have been felt in Panama . Pedregal in Chiriquí, Panama is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 187 kilometer (116 mi) south of Pedregal. The intensity of shaking and damage in Pedregal is estimated to be around level III on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale (weak shaking, probably no damage).

A complete list of nearby places is included below. Estimated intensity data (MMI) sourced from a shake-map published by the US Geographic Survey is shown where available (cities without data probably experienced little impact).

Overview of nearby places

Cities and Towns around the epicenter of this earthquake.
Distance	Place	Intensity (MMI)
187 km (116 mi) N from epicenter	Pedregal Chiriquí, Panama.	III Weak
193 km (120 mi) N from epicenter	David Chiriquí, Panama.	III Weak
202 km (126 mi) N from epicenter	La Concepción Chiriquí, Panama.
232 km (144 mi) NE from epicenter	Santiago de Veraguas Veraguas, Panama.	III Weak

Earthquake Intensity Map

The intensity in shaking and damage by this earthquake is illustrated through the map below. The highest intensity measured for this earthquake is IV.

I Not felt

II Weak

III Weak

IV Light

V Moderate

VI Strong

VII Very Strong

VIII Severe

IX Violent

X Extreme

Earthquake Intensity Map based on Shakemap Data provided by USGS.

Shaking reported by 2 people

People that feel an earthquake may report their experience to the US Geographic Survey. Currently, 2 people have reported shaking in one place in Panama.We keep updating this article as more ground reports become available. You may report that you felt this earthquake here.

Places with most reports:

Boquete, Chiriquí, Panama: 2 people.

Risk of aftershocks?

We have not yet detected any foreshocks or aftershocks (MAG-2.5 or higher) within 100km (62 mi) of this earthquake.

The risk of aftershocks decreases rapidly over time. Usually, aftershocks are at least one order of magnitude lower than a main shock.

The chance that a significant earthquake like this one is followed by an even larger earthquake is not so large. On average, scientists estimate a 94% chance that a major earthquake will not be followed by an even larger one. It is still adviced to be aware of this risk

Read: How to Stay Safe during an Earthquake (cdc.gov).

Earthquakes like this happen often in the region

Earthquakes of this strength are very common in the region. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since July 14th, 2025, when a 6.2 magnitude earthquake hit 63 km (39 mi) further south-southwest. An even stronger magnitude 6.7 earthquake struck on October 20th, 2022.

In total, 17 earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.6 or higher have been registered within 300km (186 mi) of this epicenter in the past 10 years. This comes down to an average of once every 7 months.

Low tsunami risk

DISCLAIMER: We strongly suggest to closely monitor advice from local authorities with regards to tsunami risks. Our analysis is based on automatically collected data from external sources, and these might contain mistakes. In addition, earthquakes can cause landslides that may lead to a tsunami, or be a followed by another, potentially stonger, earthquake.

Based on early data it appears this earthquake was not strong enough (lower than MAG-6.5) to be likely to cause destructive tsunami's. However this earthquake appeared to have hit at a shallow depth under sea, so stay cautious and monitor advice from local authorities.

Tsunami Risk Factors

Factor	Under Sea?	MAG-6.5 or stronger?	Shallow depth?
Explanation	Almost all tsunami's are caused by earthquakes with their epicenter under sea or very near the sea. However stay cautious in coastal areas as earthquakes on land may cause landslides into sea, potentially still causing a local tsunami.	Under MAG 6.5: Very unlikely to cause a tsunami. MAG 6.5 to 7.5: Destructive tsunami's do occur, but are uncommon. Likely to observe small sea level changes. MAG 7.6+: Earthquakes with these magnitudes might produce destructive tsunami's.	Most destructive tsunami's are caused by shallow earthquakes with a depth between 0 and 100km under the surface of the earth. Deeper tsunami's are unlikely to displace to ocean floor.
This Earthquake	This earthquake appears to have struck under the sea.	Not this earthquake. This earthquake had a magnitude of 5.6. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami.	This earthquake occurred at a depth of of 10 km (6 mi). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami.

Sources

Last updated 18/12/25 22:58 (). As more information on this earthquake becomes available this article will be updated. This article is automatically composed based on data originating from multiple sources.