Whoa! Costa Rica just had a strong and extremely rough earthquake on Friday the 13th at 4:47pm. The epicenter of the 6.0 quake was 65km deep and 6km north of Santiago de Puriscal, which is not far from my house, where I was when the shaking started.
The shaking was completely different from the others – the first few Costa Rica earthquakes I have experienced have been slow, long, and almost soothing like floating in a gentle wave pool. This was not.
This earthquake started abruptly and shook sharply with no sign of slowing or stopping.
It only shook for about 30 seconds, but those 30 seconds stretched into very long minutes in my mind as I wondered if my house was going to fall down or if the shaking was ever going to stop.
Towards the end of the quake, I could hear people running into the streets and screaming. I rode the quake out on top of my bed, which is my plan if I am upstairs when an earthquake strikes.
The sudden onset and violent shaking of this Friday the 13th quake brought back memories of a similar quake 20 years ago, with the same epicenter, and struck fear into the hearts of Ticos who brave through several earthquakes a year. Everyone was outside after the quake, anxiously anticipating aftershocks and afraid to go back inside for fear of unsafe structures.
Seismic Hazard Map. Image from USGS: neic.usgs.gov
So far there are no major damages reported, but there are landslides along some of the major highways: 27 and 32, as well as cracks in the roads. Cell phone service is spotty at best, and internet and electricity is out in some places. Luckily I have internet and electricity here in Alajuela near the airport.
I’m watching the news on TV and the 911 response center is begging people to stop calling for non-emergencies so they can respond to real emergencies from the quake. The rain has just stopped and I can now hear sirens from all types of emergency vehicles in the background, over the reports on Canal 7. We’ll have to wait for the following days to reveal the extent of damage, hopefully no one was harmed.
Wow, had no idea Costa Rica got earthquakes like this! Glad you are safe!
Thanks Jeremy. Costa Rica has so many earthquakes, sometimes it feels like the land here is constantly moving. hmmm, maybe it is?
my son and his girlfriend are with friends at either Los Almendros or they are working their way up to Santa Teresa Puntarenas…. I have not heard from them as of yet. They are not due to fly out of san jose until the 20th of May ….are things stable over in the coast area and driving back to the city from the coast ? A worried mom….Barb
Barb, Don’t worry. The earthquake was strongest in the Central Valley. Things are stable here. There were no aftershocks.
On a good day, there are problems with communications in this country, so try not to stress about that. I know it’s hard – my mom is always worried with me living here.
Also, there is a chance that your son didn’t feel it very strong where he is and isn’t aware that he should let you know he is OK. The quake was over very fast. I hope you hear from him soon.
Sounds scary – hope everyone there is ok!
Everyone is OK. The earthquake occurred at a very deep depth so the damages were minimal. It is really scary, especially with all the earthquakes that are happening all over the world!
So glad you’re OK! Spain just had an earthquake a few days ago (nowhere near Madrid). Growing up in San Francisco, earthquakes don’t really frighten me. What does, however, is living in a place like Spain that is TOTALLY unprepared for such natural disasters. Is Costa Rica prepared?
Thanks Erin. We were watching the news about the quake in Spain, that is just terrible. WHAT is going on with all these earthquakes???
Costa Rica is somewhat prepared – the new buildings in city centers are constructed to withstand earthquakes. But I don’t know about residential buildings, most of them are very flimsy. Plus there are landslides all the time. The earthquakes in Costa Rica are almost always slow and gentle, causing little damage. This one was so different – very rough! My gringa friend from San Francisco was really scared – she told me that she had never experienced anything like that, even in SF.
Wow so glad to hear you are ok!
Thanks Ayngelina. Still a little freaked out, but physically all is OK 🙂
Glad you’re safe Erin. I can’t believe how many earthquakes there have been recently. The one in Spain shocked everyone and has been on the news a lot here in Turkey. I had no idea about your earthquake! Hope everyone else is okay, too.
Julia
Thanks Turkey’s! The one in Spain shocked us, too – it was all over the news. Terrible when it happens, especially in places that are not prepared. Everyone else here is OK 🙂
So glad to hear you guys are okay after everything. There seems to be an earthquake in the world every day these days.
I’m really loving your blog by the way. I’m heading to Mexico in November to train to be a EFL teacher and there are always job offers popping up on the sites for teaching positions in Costa Rica so I’m enjoying seeing it through an expat’s eyes should I choose to go there. 🙂
It’s freaky how many quakes are shaking these days!
I’m about to start teaching English in Costa Rica. There are a lot of opportunities but the pay is minimal and some positions are only on a voluntary basis. To get paid to teach in Costa Rica, you almost always need to live in the Central Valley, which would kill that dream of living on the beach for most people. It killed mine. I’ll be posting about my teaching experience as soon as I have it! 🙂
Thanks for stopping by and for the nice comment!