Venezuela Health Minister Says Around 235 People Dead And 4,300 Injured In Catastrophic Earthquakes

LA GUAIRA, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelans searched for survivors under collapsed buildings on Thursday and rescuers rushed to northern areas shaken by a pair of boulders. strong earthquakes Officials say about 235 people were killed and at least 4,300 were injured.

“Unfortunately, we received approximately 235 patients who either did not have vital signs or died upon arrival at our healthcare facilities,” Health Minister Carlos Alvarado told state media on Thursday.

While thousands of people were reported missing after the 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude earthquakes, the number of dead and injured is expected to increase. Earthquakes that occurred on Wednesday evening, which is among the strongest Venezuelan it was felt throughout the region for more than a century.

Thousands of people were reported missing and buildings were evacuated as far as the Brazilian Amazon.

In response to the devastation, the U.S. Treasury decided Thursday to waive some sanctions through Oct. 23 to allow transactions related to earthquake relief efforts in Venezuela that would otherwise be prohibited.

Meanwhile, in the cities of northern Venezuela, Citizens in panic They took to the streets and searched for the missing under the rubble.

The injured, including children and animals, were removed from the rubble covered in dust and blood. Venezuelan state television aired dramatic rescue footage, including a woman trapped under a cement slab; There was one woman who walked out only barefoot until crews managed to get her out alive. However, very few government search parties were seen outside Caracas.

Dayana Delgado, a mother of three children in the capital, asked where the heavy machinery promised by government officials was and pointed out that the neighbors were the ones digging the rubble.

“I want to know where my child is, whether he is stranded or in a shelter,” he said of his missing 8-year-old son.

A mother cried and collapsed in grief as the bodies of her 3- and 10-year-old children were wrapped in blankets and taken away. Others shouted the names of their missing loved ones. Some remained in silent shock.

The coastal region of La Guaira, north of the capital Caracas, suffered some of the heaviest damage and losses. The country’s main airport is located there and has been closed due to damage, complicating relief efforts.

Retired teacher Juan Alberto Mendaño was climbing through the rubble and passing a body in La Guaira when he saw a trapped woman waving for help.

“May God save him as quickly as possible,” Mendaño said. “When we heard the scream, there was nothing we could do.”

Offers to send aid and supplies poured in. from around the world, including the United States Captured Venezuela’s then-president Nicolas Maduro with a surprise military operation at the beginning of the year.

Natural disaster is the latest challenge for the Deputy President Delcy Rodriguez, The former vice president who took office following Maduro’s capture in January. facing venezuela economic turmoil for over a decade and many deny its legitimacy Political movement represented by Rodríguez.

Venezuelan officials said they were diverting rescue teams from other parts of the country to La Guaira, which is no stranger to natural disasters: A 1999 landslide killed thousands of people in what is considered one of the country’s worst natural disasters.

Rodríguez on Thursday called on businesses to provide heavy construction equipment for rescue operations.

“We hope to save as many living people as possible,” said Rodríguez, who called La Guaira a “disaster area.”

He said the first rescuers from the Dominican Republic were about to land and more were expected to arrive from other countries in the coming hours.

During Venezuelan This region, located near numerous fault lines, makes strong earthquakes much less common than other parts of Latin America due to its location between the South American and Caribbean plates.

The first quake, measuring 7.2, occurred west of Moron on the Caribbean coast, about 170 kilometers (105 miles) west of Caracas, the U.S. Geological Survey said. It had a depth of 22 kilometers (about 14 miles). Just a minute later, the USGS reported a second magnitude 7.5 earthquake with a depth of 10 kilometers (about 6 miles) and an epicenter 16 kilometers (10 miles) southwest of Moron.

The one-two punch of earthquakes combined with shallow seismic movements increases the destruction, said Marcos Ferreira, a geophysicist and researcher at the Brazilian Geological Survey.

“It’s like I’m screaming and then someone starts screaming too. This amplifies the vibration and increases the potential danger,” Ferreira said.

During the earthquake, people ran away from shaking buildings. Many people were stunned Thursday morning to see buildings reduced to skeletons, furniture hanging from windows and helicopters circling overhead.

In La Guaira, Cristian Carreño looked at his burned-out apartment building leaning precariously to one side.

“I lost everything,” he said. “I think there are still people inside who can’t get out. It’s incredibly devastating.”

In downtown Caracas, hundreds of people spent the night gathering in parks, parking lots and other open spaces.

“We were afraid the buildings would collapse on us,” said María Cristina Díaz, a 41-year-old cleaner. “My mother, my daughter and I were cold. We didn’t even blink an eye.”

Rodríguez said electricity and cell phone service were out in some parts of the capital. He said metro services were stopped and natural gas was cut off. Classes will also be canceled for a few days, and the Ministry of Education said some school buildings will be used as shelters and donation centers.

Families began posting missing reports containing photos of their loved ones, while others shared handwritten lists of names as they searched for their loved ones. Venezuelans living abroad were having difficulty communicating with their relatives.

Venezuelans in the country were able to access X shortly after United Nations officials in Venezuela called on the government to lift social media restrictions so people could access potentially life-saving information. The site had been blocked by Maduro since August 2024 in order to prevent the exchange of information between those who rejected Maduro’s claim of election victory. July presidential election.

Rodríguez declared a state of emergency in his address to the nation late Wednesday. He said the government had created a $200 million reconstruction fund for damaged hospitals and homes.

Leaders from Mexico, Qatar, Brazil, Spain, Portugal and Canada pledged to send aid. A number of shipments were already on the way Thursday. Assistance included emergency personnel and military personnel, dogs and search teams, medical supplies, water purifiers, airplanes and drones.

US Secretary of State Marco RubioSpeaking to Rodríguez after the quake, Trump said the United States “immediately” deployed search and rescue teams, medical resources and other assistance but acknowledged that the closure of Venezuela’s main airport created logistical challenges.

“It’s a whole government response. It’s going to be big, it’s going to be fast, it’s going to be effective,” Rubio said.

Janetsky reported from Mexico City. Associated Press journalists Regina Garcia Cano, Mauricio Savarese, Anna-Catherine Brigida, Danica Coto, Clara Preve and Alexandra Olson contributed to this report.