Construction methods there are anything but earthquake resistant.
The three danger factors there are high density population (this wasn't, not that that is any comfort to the people who live in that area), un-reinforced masonry & poor/no foundation, and liquefaction. The epicenter seems to have been in hills or mountains, but coastal areas are nearby. An extreme example of liquefaction would be the 17th Century earthquake in Jamaica, in which pretty much the whole city of Port Royal slid into the sea.