A 5.6 magnitude earthquake was felt in most of the Costa Rican territory this Wednesday at 3:33 p.m. but it was felt with more intensity in the provinces of Puntarenas, Heredia and Alajuela; the epicenter according to the National Seismology Network was 7 kilometers south of Golfito in Puntarenas.

The movement was also felt in different areas of the Central Valley, the South Caribbean and even the east of Panama.

At 4 p.m. another seismic movement was reported in the same location with a magnitude of 3.6 Mw.

The movements have their origin in the subduction of the Cocos plate in the Pacific beneath the Caribbean plate.

This past August 17 a 6.2 magnitude earthquake shook the country also with epicenter in Golfito.

A bigger earthquake has been expected for years in the area of Osa, according to expert Marino Protti “the contact zone (fault) between the Cocos plate and the Panama block, has been slipping at close to 80mm per year since 1983 and contemplates a large area under the Osa and Burica Peninsulas.” Back in 1983 an earthquake was felt in the are with a magnitude of 7.2-7.3.