VENEZUELA TWIN QUAKES: Death toll reaches 235 as rescuers search for survivors

International

RESCUE teams continued searching through rubble for survivors after a 7.2-magnitude earthquake followed by a 7.5-magnitude earthquake struck Venezuela.

The earthquakes struck on a national holiday in Venezuela, meaning more people were at home than on a normal weekday, according to BBC News.

After the country's interim President Delcy Rodríguez declared a state of emergency, Health Minister Carlos Alvarado said the death toll had reached about 235, with more than 4,300 people injured.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) reported that the death toll was likely to rise further. Using predictive modelling, the agency estimated it could reach the thousands, with a substantial probability of exceeding 10,000.

In a video uploaded on social media, Mayor Gustavo Duque of Chacao, part of the greater Caracas metropolitan, said 11 people had died in one collapsed building, while 23 others had been rescued.

"We're trying to rescue as many people alive as possible," he said.

At least 30 aftershocks have continued to ripple through the area, Delcy Rodríguez told state-run television channel Venezolana de Televisión.

Caracas-based journalist Luis Hernandez told BBC Newsday that assessing the full extent of the damage remained difficult because power outages and internet disruptions complicated rescue and assessment efforts.

The U.S. Southern Command said it was deploying rescue teams, medical resources, and humanitarian assistance to support relief operations in Venezuela. The U.S. State Department announced it would provide $150 million in aid. (Mary Elaine Virtucio, UP Cebu Comm Intern)