Overview
- Two very strong earthquakes struck northwestern Venezuela on Wednesday evening, measured by the USGS at magnitudes 7.2 and 7.5 and occurring 39 seconds apart, producing intense shaking and many aftershocks.
- The government has declared a national state of emergency and updated its confirmed toll to at least 164 dead and about 971 injured while rescue crews continue searching wreckage for survivors.
- Widespread damage has closed Caracas’s international airport, halted national rail and metro services, and left multiple towns — including La Guaira and Tucacas — with collapsed buildings and people trapped under rubble.
- Search-and-rescue teams are operating across damaged areas as the United States and several Latin American countries activate crisis teams or offer specialist rescue and humanitarian aid.
- Estimates from automated USGS models indicate the likely fatalities could be far higher than current counts, and communications outages, holiday timing and repeated aftershocks are complicating damage assessments and relief efforts.