World Vision staff describes moment quake hits Costa Rica

A World Vision worker from Costa Rica has spoken of families fleeing from their homes as a powerful earthquake struck the country.

The 7.6-magnitude quake occurred in the north-west, shaking buildings nearly 90 miles away in the capital San Jose. A tsunami alert was issued but later cancelled.

'It left us all scared'

Heillen Sanchez, a spokesperson for World Vision Costa Rica, said: “You could hear people calling their families and see them running out of their homes.

“Costa Ricans are familiar with earthquakes. We know what to do, how to evacuate and where to go to safe spaces. But this one was especially bad. It seemed very strong and lasted very long.

“The longer it lasted, the more I was worried it that could mean bad damage for some of the other areas of the country. It left us all scared.”

Reaching services

World Vision is continuing to monitor the situation, added Ms Sanchez. She said: “As you get away from the city centre many of the needed services don’t reach people. That’s why World Vision is there on the ground.”

World Vision has been working in Costa Rica since the late 1970s, and currently operates development programme with more than 12,000 sponsored children.