Venezuela Devastated by Seismic Doublet: Earthquakes Claim Nearly 1,000 Lives, Over 50,000 Missing

On the afternoon of 24 June, Venezuela was struck by a major natural disaster: two earthquakes occurring very close together in location, time (39 seconds apart) and intensity, both over magnitude 7 on the Richter scale. This phenomenon is known as a seismic doublet and dramatically magnifies the damage caused. At the time of publication of this article, the death toll is approaching one thousand and more than 50,000 people are missing. However, the images we show you below speak for themselves. The devastation caused by the earthquakes has brought down high-rise apartment blocks, houses, warehouses and innumerable other buildings, so initial estimates pointed to tens of thousands of deaths. International aid has begun to arrive in Venezuela; however, given the number of collapsed buildings, the urgency of the search for survivors is critical. A wave of looting has already begun in the area. The desperation of the Venezuelan people has reached such a point that even the social media accounts of outlets such as 'Euronews' are being used as a platform to tell rescue teams where survivors are still trapped. Satellite images leave no room for doubt about the tragedy unfolding in Venezuela and there are already photographs of the destruction, showing piles of brick, stone and concrete where avenues of buildings once stood. One of the hardest-hit cities was La Guaira, but others such as Caraballeda have also suffered collapses and countless disappearances and deaths.