On Thursday morning at 2:24 a major earthquake rolled through Roatan Honduras and surrounding countries for approximately 20 seconds. The magnitude and duration of the Roatan earthquake surpasses the October 1989 earthquake in northern California which I also experienced. The big difference, the damage that occurred during the quake. As you probably remember in northern California there were over pass collapses, bridge failures, buildings crumbling and numerous fatalities. Here in Roatan there were no fatalities, no building collapses and almost no damage.
I talked with several people on Thursday, the day after the quake, and the worst damage anyone had heard of was some water tanks that had shifted resulting in some broken pipes. Earthquake straps on water heaters are not required here, perhaps they should be.
Even though things were a bit disorganized, we had our previously planned Realtors tour Thursday morning during which we viewed 15 homes that are on the market. None of them had any damage not even a broken glass! At my house there were a couple of picture frames and some bottles of salsa that broke as they fell off their perches, but otherwise no damage.
I think the lack of damage to homes here is a testament to the quality of construction that has been achieved. I spoke with a representative of Parrot Tree Plantation to get an update on damage there and he reported, no damage at all. The same is true for the Mayan Princess on West Bay beach. It is no coincidence that the architects that designed Parrot Tree Plantation and the Mayan Princess Beach Resort used the California earthquake standards as their design standard and it certainly paid off.
If you have plans to visit Roatan and are interested in property we will be announcing our new “Buyers Stay Free” program next month. Check our web site regularly for the details.
Enjoy Life, Philip
I am glad to hear that there was so little damage for such a large quake. I grew up in So. California and have rolled my way through many quakes….My wife and I have been looking at Roatan property over the past few months and we want to visit soon. We would love to see some of the options available to us….We are looking for a home, 3,4,5 bed on the water…or reasonably close….up to $2,000,000. We are thinking about selling all of our investment properties in the states and getting away before the government redistributes it to others….If we do not sell it all we still may want something a bit more affordable and run down to Roatan and escape for weeks at a time….We need a realitor….Is that what you do???
Hello Darren, I would be glad to assist you with your property search. There are many Americans looking here and we are getting a great community. Philip
As a fellow resident of Roatan I can only say how impressed all of us living here were in regards to the LACK of damage to homes and real estate.
Phillip! We were worried there for a while reading about all the other damage on the mainland. How bizarre. Whew! What a relief. I’m glad to have found this blog a know that it turned out to be just a wild mattress ride for the Bay Islanders. Everyone needs a little extra fun in bed sometimes eh? If Roatan can experience something like this unscathed, then the Roatan Bay Island truly is a paradise blessed with good fortune. I couldn’t help wonder about Rick’s American Cafe with it’s hillside placement and the spectacular view (my favorite awesome Gourmet Restaurant there) as well as all the other great restaurants and places I loved like Gio’s, Eagle Ray, Parrot Tree Plantation, West Bay, and Mayan Princess. I’m s glad they didn’t experience any damage. Thank goodness they were built with California building standards. Say hi and Take Care.
Hi Jess, we’re totally back to normal. There have been a few after shocks but nothing larger than 5.0. Roatan is blessed!
Philip