By Vivian Sequera and Mayela Armas
CARACAS, June 24 (Reuters) – Two powerful earthquakes struck Venezuela on Wednesday, killing at least 32 people and injuring 700 after dozens of buildings collapsed into piles of shattered concrete and steel in and around the capital Caracas.
A magnitude 7.2 earthquake hit about 160 km (100 miles) west of Caracas, followed less than a minute later by a magnitude 7.5 tremor, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).
The USGS, using predictive modeling to estimate the death toll, said it would most likely run into the thousands, with a substantial probability of exceeding 10,000.
Video footage showed emergency workers scrambling over the pancaked debris of a collapsed building in the capital as night fell, while distraught relatives sought help for loved ones believed to be trapped. Several dazed survivors were taken away, some on stretchers.
“When we went downstairs, the scene was like a horror movie,” said Maria Alejandra, a resident from a nearby building, who did not give her surname.
“We had to climb over the rubble and everything. The building superintendent with the baby and all the neighbors coming down. But from that building, I only saw that one family got out.”
Interim President Delcy Rodriguez said the initial casualty figures do not include those from worst-affected La Guaira state, near Caracas and home to the city’s airport, which had been closed.
“Dozens of buildings have collapsed, and we are currently carrying out very intense rescue efforts to save as many lives as God allows us to save,” she said in an appearance on state television just before 1 a.m. local time (0500 GMT) on Thursday.
“I also want to say that this is a true tragedy. From here, we send our message of solidarity, and to those families who have lost loved ones, we reaffirm our condolences and our support in these difficult hours.”
A website set up to track missing people and posted on X by leaders from the country’s opposition, many of whom are outside of the country, listed more than 6,600 people listed as unaccounted for soon after 2 a.m. local time (0600 GMT).
Many Venezuelans were at home when the quakes struck during the afternoon on a public holiday.
“There was a very loud crash. Things fell in the house, jugs inside the refrigerator. I’ve never experienced anything like it,” said Coro Martinez, 56, who lives in eastern Caracas.
TRUMP OFFERS HELP AFTER ‘DEVASTATING NUMBER OF DEATHS’
Aftershocks continued to rattle the capital into the early hours of Thursday.
Rodriguez said the country was focused on rescue efforts, including the arrival in the coming hours of rescue crews from other countries, as she thanked leaders including U.S. President Donald Trump.
Trump said in a post on social media the U.S. was ready, willing and able to help in the disaster.
“The two major earthquakes that just hit the great people of Venezuela are both massive in scale and have left a devastating number of deaths,” said Trump, who ordered the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in a violent raid in January.
RESIDENTS RUSH INTO THE STREETS
Wilmer Azuaje, a former Venezuelan lawmaker, captured the moment the quake hit Maiquetia Airport, sending masonry and clouds of dust falling.
“Everyone, the situation we’re experiencing here is serious. A high-magnitude earthquake. Look at how everything ended up,” he said while videoing the scene.
A tsunami warning was issued but swiftly canceled after the danger passed.
Residents across Caracas, which was also hit by a deadly magnitude 6.3 earthquake in 1967, rushed to evacuate as buildings shook.
“As soon as it started, we began hearing people screaming,” said Astrid Ramirez, a 41-year-old publicist in western Caracas. “Everyone was running down the stairs.”
Maria Romero, an 80-year-old pensioner in southern Caracas, said police helped her get out of her home. “This earthquake was horrible, even worse than the one in 1967,” she said.
Another resident, a 41-year-old office worker who declined to be named, said she received an earthquake alert on her phone just before the shaking intensified.
“As I picked it up and started listening to what it was saying, I first felt light shaking. Then, in less than two seconds, everything started moving.”
Leaders from countries including El Salvador, the Dominican Republic, Brazil and Spain offered support and sympathy, while the U.S. State Department said it was in touch with Venezuelan authorities and mobilizing assistance.
The U.S. embassy in Caracas said it was closely monitoring the aftermath of the quake and urged citizens in the country to seek secure shelter.
Venezuela lies in a seismically active zone where the Caribbean Plate meets the South American Plate.
An estimated 30,000 people were killed when a powerful quake caused widespread destruction in the cities of Merida and Caracas in 1812, according to the USGS.
HOSPITALS BRACE FOR THE INJURED
At Caracas’ Hospital de Clinicas, staff were asked to double up on the night shift to help treat the injured, a worker there said. Classes were canceled for the rest of the week as authorities began to take stock of the damage.
Venezuela’s oil infrastructure did not immediately appear to be affected by the tremors. Civil protection authorities in Maracaibo, near the large oil hub of Lake Maracaibo, said there were no injuries reported and a worker at the El Palito refinery near Morón – the epicenter of the earthquake – said there had been no damage there.
UK oil firm Shell, which is evaluating developing gas fields in Venezuela, said all its employees in the country are accounted for with no injuries.
One source noted that extended loss of power could hit crude output levels until the service is restored. Venezuela’s oil ministry, state-run oil company PDVSA and its main foreign partner, Chevron, did not immediately reply to requests for comment.
(Reporting by Vivian Sequera and Mayela Armas in Caracas; Additional reporting by Deisy Buitrago and Reuters TV in Caracas, Tibisay Romero in Valencia, Venezuela, Keren Torres in Barquisimeto, Venezuela, Tathiana Ortiz in San Cristobal, Venezuela, Mariela Nava in Maracaibo, Venezuela, Marianna Parraga and Sheila Dang in Houston, Fabian Cambero in Santiago and Ana Isabel Martinez in Mexico City; Writing by Kylie Madry; Editing by Julia Symmes Cobb, Daina Beth Solomon, Lincoln Feast and Raju Gopalakrishnan)
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