In May 1931, an earthquake destroyed Managua, killing over 2,000 people. The disruption and the losses the earthquake caused weakened the central government and gave Sandino leverage to revive his fight with the Americans. In the summer of 1931, Sandinista bands were active in every department north of Managua and conducted raids into the southern and western parts of the country, the departments of Estelí, Jinotega, León and Chontales. They briefly managed to occupy several towns along the nation's principal railroad, linking Managua to the Pacific coastal port of Corinto, but did not try to capture any of the nation's urban centers. They briefly occupied some smaller cities, such as Chinandega.