4.2 was the strongest of the some 150 aftershocks registered after the original 5.6 quake early Monday morning in Panama, near the Costa Rican border.
It was 3:41 am local time when many all over Costa Rica were awakened by the strong quake southwest of Sixaola, an area that was hit by a strnong earthquake on April 22, 1991.
Costa Rica’s seismology institute, the OVISCORI, says it does not rule out the possibility of a quake in the area that may be stronger than 6 on the Richter scale.
Though the likelihood is “pretty low”, according to the experts, the threat exists.
In the 1991 quake, known as Limón Earthquake or Bocas del Toro earthquake least 48 died in Bocas del Toro, Panama. Roads and bridges between Limón and Sixaola were all destroyed, and the epicentral region was only accessible by helicopter from the Panamaian side.
In Limón, hotels and other landmarks collapsed and 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) of uplift at the waterfront left coral and sand bluffs exposed. In Panama, extensive damaged also occurred in Guabito, Changuinola, Almirante and Isla Colon. The Chiquita Brands office building in Changuinola separated with a 3 metre breach. The international bridge of Sixaola stayed intact because it was well constructed by Americans in the early 1900s.
