Jamaine Punzalan

A collapsed building is seen in Caraballeda, La Guaira state, some 40 km northeast of Caracas, on June 25, 2026, following twin earthquakes. The death toll from twin quakes, measured at magnitudes 7.2 and 7.5, has risen to at least 188, with more than 1,520 others injured, top lawmaker Jorge Rodriguez reported, while residents continue searching for missing relatives. Federico Parra, AFP

Article (news)

Agence France-Presse

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:960px;display:block" width="960"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1782429585824AFP__20260625__B8CV4R3__v1__MidRes__VenezuelaEarthquake.jpg" style="width:960px" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="960"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">A collapsed building is seen in Caraballeda, La Guaira state, some 40 km northeast of Caracas, on June 25, 2026, following twin earthquakes. The death toll from twin quakes, measured at magnitudes 7.2 and 7.5, has risen to at least 188, with more than 1,520 others injured, top lawmaker Jorge Rodriguez reported, while residents continue searching for missing relatives. Federico Parra, AFP</span></span></span></div><p>Desperate Venezuelans battled Thursday to rescue loved ones trapped alive beneath the rubble of collapsed buildings after <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2026/6/25/two-powerful-earthquakes-strike-venezuela-destroying-buildings-0822">two major earthquakes</a> that killed at least 188 people.</p><p>Buildings cracked, crumbled, and tilted precariously after the quakes, which the United States Geological Survey measured at magnitudes 7.2 and 7.5, hit northern Venezuela within less than a minute of each other on Wednesday night.</p><p>Powerful aftershocks could still be felt Thursday as National Assembly chief Jorge Rodriguez said the death toll had risen to 188, with 1,520 injured.</p><p>Rescue efforts moved slowly, with bodies still visible under debris hours after the quakes, while time ran out for some of those who were trapped and injured.</p><p>In a city in the worst-hit state of La Guaira, north of Caracas, residents listened helplessly as a young girl cried out for help for hours.</p><p>&quot;We need people..., military personnel, to come and help so we can get her out,&quot; said resident Dani Rizo, 48.</p><p>Not long after, the girl died, locals told AFP.</p><div><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/nation/2026/6/25/dfa-says-no-filipino-casualties-reported-in-venezuela-twin-quakes-1350">DFA says no Filipino casualties reported in Venezuela twin quakes </a></div><p>Elsewhere in La Guaira, three people could be heard in the rubble of a collapsed building.</p><p>&quot;They&#x27;re still alive... There&#x27;s nothing more we can do,&quot; said one resident, Antonio Bermudez. &quot;We don&#x27;t have any tools. We have no way to help.&quot;</p><p>A doctor at the Domingo Luciani Hospital in the city, speaking on condition of anonymity, said children were arriving in ambulances alone after being pulled out of the rubble.</p><p>&quot;Some children provide their names, while others arrive with identification tape on their arms,&quot; he said.</p><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/jnAgxsX1E1o?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>GLOBAL RESCUE TEAMS ON THE WAY</strong></div><div><br/></div><p>A rescue worker, speaking off the record, told AFP conditions were precarious, with a shortage of trained personal and significant technical limitations.</p><p>Interim president Delcy Rodriguez visited La Guaira on Thursday after the area was declared a &quot;disaster zone.&quot;</p><p>AFP reporters witnessed residents looting a local supermarket in the city.</p><p>Venezuela&#x27;s director of the International Rescue Committee (IRC), Nicole Kast, described the situation as &quot;catastrophic.&quot;</p><div><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2026/6/25/mothers-search-men-weep-amid-debris-of-venezuela-quakes-1132">Mothers search, men weep amid debris of Venezuela quakes</a></div><p>Offers of support poured in from around the world, with Switzerland, Spain, France, Portugal and Mexico among those sending specialists and rescue teams to Venezuela.</p><p>China, India, Brazil and even war-battered Iran offered help, while Pope Leo XIV has sent an initial 100,000 euros in aid to the country.</p><p>The United States said it was mobilizing $150 million in aid.</p><p>&quot;We have a whole-of-government response. It&#x27;ll be big, it&#x27;ll be fast, and it&#x27;ll be effective,&quot; said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.</p><p>Washington is closely involved in oil-rich Venezuela after <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2026/3/6/us-venezuela-restore-ties-as-washington-pushes-for-minerals-access-1035">US forces ousted and arrested president Nicolas Maduro in January.</a></p><div><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/business/2026/2/12/us-pushes-for-dramatic-increase-in-venezuela-oil-output-0744">US pushes for &#x27;dramatic increase&#x27; in Venezuela oil output </a><br/><a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/world/2026/1/5/the-us-and-venezuela-s-vast-oil-reserves-key-questions-0812">The US and Venezuela&#x27;s vast oil reserves: Key questions </a></div><p>UN chief Antonio Guterres said he was &quot;deeply saddened&quot; by the disaster as the global body vowed to assist Venezuela.</p><p>The strongest quake to hit Venezuela in 126 years will require &quot;massive collective efforts,&quot; UN aid chief Tom Fletcher said in a statement.</p><p>Threatening to complicate relief efforts, the international airport is in La Guaira and has been closed after suffering serious damage.</p><p>An Italian and a Portuguese citizen were among the dead, officials from both countries confirmed.</p><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Ze3cuaWASvw?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div><div><br/></div><div><strong>TREMORS FELT IN COLOMBIA AND BRAZIL </strong></div><div><br/></div><p>Venezuela&#x27;s northern coast sits on a boundary between the Caribbean and South American tectonic plates, but has not suffered a significant quake since 1997, when 73 people died.</p><p>Another quake in 1967 killed 236 people.</p><p>Wednesday&#x27;s 7.5-magnitude earthquake was the most powerful since October 29, 1900, when a 7.7-magnitude tremor struck offshore.</p><p>The quake was felt across Colombia, where residents in Bogota evacuated buildings as a precaution.</p><p>Tremors were also reported in several cities in northern Brazil, according to the country&#x27;s seismic monitoring network.</p><p>Scenes of panic and destruction also played out in the capital Caracas, where many spent the night sleeping on the streets or in their cars.</p><p>Rita Gomez, 60, travelled to the capital after seeing on social media that the building her daughter lives in had collapsed and that she was not answering her phone.</p><p>She told AFP that heavy machinery had arrived and there was &quot;a lot of cooperation from the neighbors. We are trusting in God that they will find her alive.&quot;</p><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/qOOndTsLMaM?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kJDRgvhGrYw?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/0TB3L9LX7AI?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div>

<p>Desperate Venezuelans battled Thursday to rescue loved ones trapped alive beneath the rubble of collapsed buildings after two major earthquakes that killed at least 188 people.</p>

Desperate Venezuelans battled Thursday to rescue loved ones trapped alive beneath the rubble of collapsed buildings after two major earthquakes that killed at least 188 people.

Venezuela mounts desperate search for survivors after twin quakes kill at least 188

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Venezuela mounts desperate search for survivors after twin quakes kill at least 188

Agence France-Presse

Published June 26, 2026 07:23 AM PHT

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