DAVID , Panama ( CNN ) -- Dozens of families frightened by aftershocks slept outside overnight Wednesday after a magnitude 6.2 earthquake shook coastal Panama near the border with Costa Rica . The quake was centered about 235 miles ( 380 km ) west of Panama City , near the town of David , according to the U.S. Geological Survey . The temblor occurred at 1:11 a.m . ET and residents reported feeling three aftershocks . There were no immediate reports of casualties , but damage was reported in the cities of Paso Canoa , David and Puerto Armuelles . The extent of the damage was not immediately known . Many families opted to stay outside their homes , saying that they felt as if the earth were swallowing them and that trees and their houses were falling down . One resident , Carlos Estribi , said he picked up his children in his arms and ran to the public plaza in David , seeking protection since he felt like his house was collapsing . Family members told CNN that patients at the Regional Hospital of David went outside and refused to go back in because aftershocks were still being felt . Patients at the Materno Infantil Jose de Obaldia Hospital and the Regional Rafael Hernandez Hospital also fled their rooms . Cyclists from Costa Rica , Colombia , the Dominican Republic and Germany , who were in David for a bicycle race , also had to leave their hotel rooms . Police and other security officials were inspecting schools , hospitals and private and public buildings for damage . Journalist Demetrio Abrego in David contributed to this report .
NEW : Frightened patients leave , and refuse to return as aftershocks hit . NE : No immediate reports of damage ; damage reported but extent not yet known . Quake struck at 6 a.m . ET about 240 miles ( 380 km ) west of Panama City .