A New Zealand woman travelling through Panama says the earthquake was unlike anything she had ever experienced back home.

The magnitude 7.7 earthquake occurred near Pitaloza Arriba at 6.56am on Saturday, New Zealand time.

Aftershocks measuring up to magnitude 5.8 followed soon after.

The initial quake had a depth of 12.6 kilometres, according to the United States Geological Survey, which said the disaster was likely widespread.

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and GNS Science initially said it was assessing whether the quake had created a tsunami that could affect New Zealand.

“Based on current information, the initial assessment is that the earthquake is unlikely to have caused a tsunami that will affect New Zealand,” it said about half an hour later.

The United States Geological Survey said approximately 4.6 million people experienced moderate to severe shaking.

One of those was Sirpa Alalääkkölä, who was travelling through Chitré on her way to Panama City at the time the quake struck.

Alalääkkölä, based in the Marlborough Sounds, told RNZ that people around her appeared shaken, with some crying.

“Honestly, I did not know that there are earthquakes here,” Alalääkkölä said.

While Alalääkkölä had experienced the magnitude 7.8 earthquake in Kaikōura when she lived in Nelson in 2016, she said this earthquake felt “a lot bigger”.

“You could feel the earth moving, like, in a way that I’ve never felt in New Zealand.

“Nothing really came down, but it was just really, really strong swaying off the ground.”

While Alalääkkölä was concerned that Tocumen International Airport in Panama City would still be closed before her flight to Mexico on Sunday, the airport had reopened after a temporary safety closure and evacuation.

There were 51 New Zealanders registered with safetravel.govt.nz as being in Panama. Officials said they had not received any requests for assistance.

The Ford Football Ferns were in Panama during the earthquake and set to play the Panama team on Sunday.

New Zealand Football confirmed in a statement that all members of the squad were safe and accounted for.

“New Zealand Football is in contact with local authorities, team management and match organisers and will continue to monitor the situation.”