Al Jazeera

By Daniel Khalili-Tari, Usaid Siddiqui and Stephen Quillen

    Back-to-back powerful earthquakes have struck Venezuela, collapsing buildings in the capital, Caracas, and leaving residents shaken.

    Acting President Delcy Rodriguez declares a state of emergency and says the Simon Bolivar International Airport in Caracas is closed due to damage.

    The US Geological Survey (USGS) says the first earthquake, measuring magnitude 7.2, struck west of Moron, about 168 km (104 miles) west of Caracas. A second tremor of magnitude 7.5 hit near the same area just a minute later.

    The USGS warns that “high casualties and extensive damage are probable” and that the “disaster is likely widespread”.

35 Updates

Panama’s president offers solidarity, support for Venezuela

    Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino is the latest foreign leader to respond to the crisis in Venezuela.

    In a post on X, Mulino conveyed Panama’s “deepest solidarity and support” to Venezuela, while offering to send humanitarian aid.

US to send search and rescue teams, humanitarian supplies to Venezuela

    Under Secretary for Foreign Assistance Jeremy Lewin has provided more details on the US’s planned emergency aid to Venezuela, saying a dedicated disaster assistance team and task force have already been mobilised “to deliver and coordinate critical assistance”.

    In a post on X, Lewin said the US would send “search and rescue teams, medical and humanitarian supplies and other resources in the crucial first days after this tragic natural disaster”.

Authorities give few details on casualties, hours into disaster

    More than five hours after two powerful earthquakes struck Venezuela, national authorities have provided few details about the scale of the disaster.

    In her address to the nation earlier, acting President Delcy Rodriguez did not provide any indication of the number of casualties.

    State media, such as Agencia Venezolana de Noticias and Venezolana de Televisión, have also reported few details about the impact of the quakes.

    The US Geological Survey, a US government science agency that monitors seismic activity, has estimated that the death toll could range from 10,000 to 100,000 people.

Ecuador pledges swift humanitarian aid to Venezuela

    President Daniel Noboa has announced Ecuador is rapidly deploying humanitarian assistance to Caracas.

    “I have arranged for the immediate sending of humanitarian aid to address this emergency,” he posted on X.

    “Ecuador will respond with the speed and commitment that this moment demands because, despite the enormous differences, humanity must always guide the actions of a leader.”

How did USGS estimate 10,000 or more deaths

    Shortly after Venezuela was hit by back-to-back earthquakes, the USGS was already reporting a potential death toll of 10,000 to 100,000 people.

    The USGS was able to calculate this figure so quickly because of an advanced modelling called PAGER, or Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquake Response, according to Vashan Wright, a geophysicist at the University of California, San Diego.

    “Essentially, what it does is takes all known knowledge about the magnitude, depth, location, population density, historical earthquakes, and building inventory… and makes a prediction for what might be expected,” he said.

    And a lot of the time, the PAGER prediction “is quite close” to the actual toll, he added.

Venezuela’s twin earthquakes felt in parts of Brazil

    Brazil’s Foreign Ministry has confirmed that the twin earthquakes in Venezuela were felt in parts of Brazil.

    In a post on X, the ministry said the government was monitoring the situation and was not aware of any Brazilian nationals being injured in Venezuela.

    Brazil shares a border with Venezuela that stretches more than 2,100km (1,305 miles).

Residents of Caracas ‘out on streets’ amid fear of aftershocks

By Teresa Bo

Reporting from Bogota, Colombia

    These two quakes were also felt here in Bogota, in Bucaramanga, and some other parts of Colombia as well.

    The minister of interior of Venezuela, Diosdado Cabello, confirmed that several buildings had collapsed. However, he did not say how much damage these two earthquakes had caused across the country.

    About 80 percent of the population in Venezuela lives in seismic areas. And, for example, in the [hard-hit] area of Altamira in Caracas, many of the buildings that collapsed are built on sediments, and this makes them much more vulnerable to seismic waves.

    Also, there’s lots of informal housing in several areas across the country, and those types of buildings are not prepared to sustain very strong earthquakes.

    So, as we speak, we’re still trying to get more information. The government is telling people not to go back inside the buildings as there’s lots of aftershocks happening.

    People are on the streets as the government is trying to find out exactly how much damage these two earthquake caused in the country.

Interior minister urges public to exercise ‘utmost caution’, avoid buildings

    In comments carried by Venezuela’s El Nacional newspaper, Diosdado Cabello has urged people to “exercise maximum caution, maximum awareness, and to understand the situation we are experiencing at this moment”.

    Cabello said people should stay away from large trees, buildings, and other structures.

    “Go outside, wait calmly outside, and report any situation to the agencies deployed throughout the country,” he said.

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Chacao mayor says 18 people rescued

    As we recently reported, the mayor of Chacao says local authorities are responding to the twin earthquakes.

    Gustavo Duque has now confirmed that 18 people have been rescued, while at least four buildings have collapsed in the municipality.

    He added that more than 500 search-and-rescue personnel are actively looking for survivors.

Opposition politician barred from 2024 election offers prayers

    María Corina Machado, who was barred from running against Nicolás Maduro in the 2024 presidential election after winning the Unitary Platform primaries, has offered prayers to Venezuelans in “these hours of anguish”.

    Translation: My heart, my infinite embrace, and my prayers are with every Venezuelan home in these hours of anguish. May strength, serenity, and solidarity prevail among us in the face of this difficult moment. May God protect every Venezuelan, our families, and our homes. Today, we are more united than ever.

‘All I can see are shattered objects and glass’

    Noris Argotte Soto, a journalist in Caracas, has described scenes of panic across the city.

    “The natural disaster caused panic in the population. We were forced to leave our homes,” she told Al Jazeera over the phone.

    “My building, for example, suffered an important fracture. As of now, we don’t have power or internet, and all I can see are shattered objects and glass,” she added.

    According to Soto, at least eight buildings sustained significant damage in the Chacao municipality, while several others collapsed completely.

    “We could see people on the streets, people afraid to go back to their homes or buildings,” she added, saying there were fears of possible aftershocks.

Aftershocks of 3 or 4 magnitude possible over the next week

    We have more from Vashan Wright, the geophysicist at the University of California.

    He said the region around Venezuela will likely experience aftershocks over the next week.

    “Based on historical knowledge and statistics of earthquakes, there is a 99 percent chance that you’ll have some magnitude 4 and magnitude 3 [aftershocks] in the next week. A magnitude 5 has a high probability, over 90 percent probability,” he told Al Jazeera.

    “But something like a magnitude 7 or a 6 has a very lower probability of occurring again within the next week,” he added.

    The difference between each level in magnitude is logarithmic, Wright said, which means a magnitude 7.5 earthquake releases about 180 times as much energy as a magnitude 6 earthquake.

Rodriguez calls on health workers to report to work

    The Venezuelan acting president has asked doctors and nurses to report to local hospitals and emergency rooms to help treat those injured in the earthquakes.

    “I want to ask the doctors, nurses, and all the health personnel as a whole to go to their jobs, so that we can attend to the people who are being taken to the emergency rooms of both hospitals and private health centres,” Rodriguez said during her address to the nation, according to Venezuela’s El Nacional newspaper.

    Rodriguez said that national, state and municipal authorities are working to address the crisis, with priority aid being sent to the hardest-hit states.

US Energy Secretary sends condolences to Venezuela

    US Energy Secretary Chris Wright has joined a chorus of foreign officials expressing solidarity with Venezuela.

    “We send our deepest condolences to the families who have suffered loss and are wishing strength, safety, and a swift recovery to all impacted communities during this time,” he said in a post on X.

US pledges support for Venezuela

    Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau says Washington is already coordinating support.

    “The US stands with the Venezuelan people in the aftermath of this evening’s devastating earthquakes. We’re in touch with the authorities and mobilising assistance,” Landau said in a post on X.

How much energy is released by a magnitude 7.5 earthquake

    The second magnitude 7.5 earthquake that hit Venezuela this morning was equivalent to about 100 million tonnes of Trinitrotoluene or TNT exploding, according to Vashan Wright, a geophysicist at the University of California, San Diego.

    Caracas, he said, is especially vulnerable to earthquakes.

    “Caracas has a deep sediment basin that amplifies the seismic waves that come up from deep within the earth’s surface,” he told Al Jazeera.

    “Whenever you have these basins with a lot of sediment, they get magnified. And that’s one reason why Caracas might see more damage than in other areas in the country.”

El Salvador offers to send rescuers to Venezuela

    Nayib Bukele, the president of El Salvador, has said his country has offered Venezuela assistance through its Foreign Ministry.

    “300 rescuers and paramedics, along with 50 tonnes of equipment, medicines, and essential supplies, are ready to depart for Caracas,” Bukele said in a post on X.

‘It kept getting stronger’

    We have more from survivors in Caracas.

    “It was unbelievable; I don’t even know how long it lasted,” said Heidi Romero, who was on the top floor of a shopping centre when the quakes struck.

    “We went out through the emergency stairs; that’s how they got us out,” the 42-year-old shopkeeper told AFP.

    Carmen Guedez, 69, was in the same room as her bedridden sister when she felt the jolt.

    “It kept getting stronger,” said the administrator, who lives in a hilly, middle-class neighbourhood above the capital. “I started to see the windows begin to move, and then everything shook.”

Rodriguez says schools, rail services suspended