Venezuela Earthquakes: Over 68,000 Missing, 1,430 Dead as Rescue Efforts Continue

More than 68,000 people are reportedly still missing in Venezuela after two earthquakes devastated parts of the country earlier this week. Back-to-back 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude tremors hit Venezuela on Wednesday, causing widespread destruction and killing 1,430 people. A further 3,238 people were injured.

Emergency response teams have flown in from around the world to support the 30,000 Venezuelan specialists leading search and rescue efforts, as authorities race to recover survivors. Venezuela's acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, said 24 countries have so far provided support, sending 521 tonnes of supplies, 86 canine teams and more than 2,741 search, rescue and support personnel.

Many locals have also taken matters into their own hands, digging through mounds of rubble in an attempt to find their loved ones. Harrowing videos circulating on social media show rescuers pulling people, including infants, out from toppled buildings. The first 72 hours are said to be the most crucial for successful rescues. This period has now passed.

Kaja Kallas, the European Union's top diplomat, said on Sunday that she had held a call with Rodríguez following the earthquakes. "I conveyed the EU's full solidarity with the Venezuelan people and our deepest condolences to the families of those who lost loved ones," she wrote in a post on X. "The EU has already mobilised €5 million in emergency assistance for affected communities," she added.

A preliminary estimate from the United Nations Development Programme put the cost of direct physical damage caused by the quakes at $6.7 billion.