Venezuela earthquake toll rises to 235 as rescuers race to find survivors under rubble

The Venezuelan government said at least 235 people have died, more than 4,300 have been injured and around 200 remain trapped after twin earthquakes of magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 struck about 160 km west of Caracas.

In Short

• Over 235 confirmed dead and 4,300 injured after powerful twin quakes
• Hundreds trapped under rubble, 250 buildings damaged or destroyed
• At least 30 aftershocks complicated rescues across affected areas

Venezuelans searched for survivors beneath collapsed buildings on Friday as rescue operations entered a second day and a race against time intensified after a pair of powerful earthquakes killed at least 235 people and left more than 4,300 injured. According to reports, hundreds of people remained trapped under the rubble, while tens of thousands were still unaccounted for on Friday morning.

A magnitude 7.2 earthquake struck around 160 km (100 miles) west of Caracas in the early hours of Thursday, followed less than a minute later by a magnitude 7.5 tremor, the strongest to hit Venezuela since 1900, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS).

Venezuela's Health Minister Carlos Alvarado on Friday morning informed that medical centres had received around 235 bodies following the earthquakes and over 4,300 others were injured, according to the Associated Press.

At least 30 aftershocks have been recorded since the two powerful earthquakes hit Venezuela, interim President Delcy Rodrguez said in an interview with state television channel Venezolana de Television.

The US Geological Survey's predictive modelling suggested the death toll could climb into the thousands, with a significant probability that it may exceed 10,000. Among the severely damaged structures were at least eight hospitals, the headquarters of the Venezuelan Red Cross and the French embassy.

Furthermore, Jorge Rodriguez, head of the National Assembly and brother of interim President Delcy Rodriguez, said around 200 people remained trapped and that 250 buildings had been damaged or destroyed.

The earthquakes struck a country already weakened by years of economic turmoil, which has left much of its infrastructure fragile and complicated rescue efforts as aftershocks continued to shake Caracas and nearby coastal areas.

The earthquakes were likely caused by the abrupt release of built-up friction between two tectonic plates that meet beneath Venezuela.

VENEZUELA'S LA GUAIRA BECOMES DISASTER ZONE

La Guaira, the coastal state bordering Caracas and home to the capital's main airport, was among the worst-hit regions. Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello said the disaster had affected about 70,000 families in the coastal state of La Guaira.

Acting President Delcy Rodriguez described it as a "disaster zone" and said the government was working with private companies to deploy heavy equipment and accelerate rescue efforts.

Power remained patchy across parts of the state, while Caracas' main airport was shut after sustaining damage. Videos shared by witnesses showed scenes of panic inside the terminal as ceiling panels collapsed.

Emergency personnel and volunteers continued searching through the rubble into the night, though residents in some areas complained that official assistance had been slow to arrive.

Volunteers dug through the wreckage with their bare hands as anxious families waited for news of missing relatives. Along the Caracas-La Guaira highway, civilians carrying water, food and medicines streamed toward the coast to help communities overwhelmed by the scale of the disaster.

According to Reuters, a website created to track missing persons and shared by Opposition leaders listed more than 46,000 people as unaccounted for by Thursday evening, although the figures could not be independently verified.

NATIONS UNITE TO AID QUAKE-HIT VENEZUELA

Countries around the world, including some that have long been at odds with Venezuela, pledged support for the disaster-hit nation. Acting President Delcy Rodriguez said international rescue teams were expected to arrive soon and thanked leaders, including US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, for their assistance.

Washington eased sanctions to allow transactions related to earthquake relief, with Trump saying the United States was "ready, willing and able to help". US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said rescue teams would be deployed and that the Pentagon would assist with logistics and support operations at Caracas' damaged airport.

UN aid chief Tom Fletcher said the organisation was coordinating international rescue efforts and warned that a "massive collective effort" would be required in a country where around 8 million people already needed humanitarian assistance before the disaster.

The UN's Venezuelan human rights mission also urged the government to ease restrictions on certain social media platforms, calling internet connectivity a "matter of life and death".

FAMILIES PICK THROUGH QUAKE WRECKAGE

Many Venezuelans were at home enjoying a public holiday when the earthquakes struck, sending residents fleeing from shaking buildings into the streets as structures swayed and, in some cases, collapsed across Caracas and nearby coastal communities. Near the epicentre in Moron, a coastal town in Carabobo state, homes were reduced to rubble and residents were left without electricity or running water.

Around 200 families living in a damaged residential complex were salvaging whatever belongings they could, including mattresses, televisions and washing machines. While some planned to seek shelter with relatives, others were waiting for the government to open temporary shelters.

Meanwhile, SpaceX's Starlink said it would provide free services through July 25 for customers in affected areas and was working to deploy terminals to the worst-hit regions to restore communications.

The company is also working to "rapidly deploy Starlink terminals and restore connectivity to the hardest-hit areas," Starlink said on X.

In Venezuela's crucial oil sector, foreign energy companies said operations had not suffered major disruption and that oil infrastructure appeared to have escaped significant damage.

Furthermore, the United Nations' children's agency, UNICEF, has warned that thousands of children are at risk in Venezuela following the twin earthquakes that struck the country. In a statement issued on Thursday, the agency said nearly 3.9 million children live in the affected areas and that many families are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance.

"The images we are seeing from Venezuela and the stories we hear from colleagues on the ground are heartbreaking," UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said, stressing that children's safety, protection and well-being must remain at the centre of the response as the full scale of the devastation becomes clear.

UNICEF cautioned that children are likely to be among the most vulnerable in the aftermath of the disaster, facing risks including injuries, family separation, displacement, psychological distress and disruptions to essential services such as healthcare, safe water, education and protection.

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