University of Panama Plans More Drills and Risk-Management Training After Earthquake
PANAMA, October 20, 2026 — The University of Panama says it will strengthen risk-management training and evacuation drills after the October 9 earthquake, with a focus on helping students, teachers and administrative staff respond in an organized way to future emergencies.
The announcement also includes a concrete campus impact: ten classrooms at the Centro Regional Universitario de Coclé will remain out of service because of wall cracks, according to the report.
Preparedness is more than an evacuation route
A drill is most useful when people understand why it is taking place, who is responsible for decisions, where they should go and how information will be communicated. Universities are complex environments, with crowded classrooms, laboratories, offices and visitors. Training therefore needs to be practical, repeated and adapted to each campus.
The University of Panama has 19 faculties and 10 regional university centers, the report said. That scale makes consistency important, while also requiring local plans that reflect the condition and layout of individual facilities.
Support for affected students
Rector José Emilio Moreno urged teachers to show solidarity and flexibility toward students whose families were affected by the earthquake. That message recognizes that recovery can affect attendance, transportation, housing and a student’s ability to keep up with coursework.
It is also important to separate temporary academic flexibility from a permanent decision about a building’s safety. The report identifies ten classrooms that will remain out of service; technical evaluations and official campus notices should guide any further decisions about use of facilities.
For students and staff, the practical next step is to follow official University of Panama communications about schedules, classroom changes, drills and emergency procedures. A campus-wide statement is helpful, but local instructions from a faculty or regional center may be the most relevant notice for a particular day.
Source: Telemetro report on the University of Panama announcement, October 2026.