Venezuela health minister says around 235 people dead and 4,300 injured
in catastrophic earthquakes
[June 26, 2026]
By MEGAN JANETSKY, ANDRY RINCÓN and JUAN PABLO ARRAEZ
LA GUAIRA, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuelans searched for survivors beneath
collapsed buildings Thursday and rescue teams raced to northern areas
rocked by a pair of powerful earthquakes that officials say killed
around 235 people and left at least 4,300 people injured.
“Unfortunately we have received around 235 patients who arrive without
vital signs or die when they arrive at our health facilities,” Health
Minister Carlos Alvarado told state media Thursday.
The number of dead and injured is expected to rise with thousands
reported missing after the 7.2- and 7.5-magnitude earthquakes that
struck Wednesday evening, which was among the strongest in Venezuela in
more than a century and was felt throughout the region.
Thousands were reported missing and buildings were evacuated as far away
as Brazil’s Amazon.
In response to the devastation, the U.S. Treasury on Thursday moved to
waive some sanctions until Oct. 23 to allow transactions related to
earthquake relief efforts in Venezuela that would otherwise be
prohibited.
Meanwhile, in cities across northern Venezuela, panicked residents
poured into the streets and searched for the missing in the debris.
The injured were pulled out of the rubble covered in dust and blood,
among them children and animals. Venezuelan state TV showed dramatic
images of rescues, including a woman who was trapped under a cement
slab, only a barefoot poking out before crews managed to get her out
alive. But few government search teams were seen outside Caracas.
In the capital, Dayana Delgado, mother of three children, asked where
the heavy machinery was that government officials had promised, pointing
out that neighbors were the ones digging through the rubble.
“I want to know where my child is, if he’s trapped or in a shelter,” she
said of her 8-year-old son who was missing.
One mother sobbed and collapsed in grief as the bodies of her 3- and
10-year-old children were wrapped in blankets and carried away. Others
screamed the names of missing loved ones. Some stood in silent shock.
The coastal region of La Guaira — north of the capital, Caracas —
suffered some of the heaviest damage and casualties. The country’s main
airport is there and was closed due to damage, complicating aid efforts.
Retired schoolteacher Juan Alberto Mendaño climbed through wreckage in
La Guaira and past a dead body when he spotted a woman who was trapped
and signaling with her hand for help.
“May God rescue her as quickly as possible,” said Mendaño. “When we
heard the scream, there was nothing we could do.”
Offers to send aid and supplies poured in from around the world,
including from the United States, which seized Venezuela's
then-president Nicolas Maduro at the beginning of the year in a surprise
military operation.
The natural disaster is just the latest challenge for acting President
Delcy Rodríguez, the former vice president who took office in January
after Maduro's capture. Venezuela has been facing economic disarray for
more than a decade, and many people reject the legitimacy of the
political movement Rodríguez represents.
Rescue teams head to heavily damaged coastal region
Venezuelan authorities said they were diverting rescue teams from other
parts of the country to La Guaira, which is no stranger to natural
disasters: a 1999 mudslide killed thousands in what is considered one of
the country’s worst natural disasters.
Rodríguez appealed to businesses Thursday to make heavy construction
equipment available for rescue operations.
“We hope to rescue as many living people as possible,” said Rodríguez,
who referred to La Guaira as a “disaster zone.”
She said the first rescuers from the Dominican Republic were about to
land and more from other countries were expected to arrive in the coming
hours.
While Venezuela sits near multiple fault lines, its position straddling
the South American and Caribbean plates makes strong earthquakes much
less common than in other parts of Latin America.
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Patients lie outside a hospital evacuated after it was damaged in an
earthquake in Catia La Mar, Venezuela, Thursday, June 25, 2026. (AP
Photo/Pedro Mattey)
The U.S. Geological Survey said the first earthquake, with a
magnitude of 7.2, hit west of Moron on the Caribbean coast, about
170 kilometers (105 miles) west of Caracas. It had a depth of 22
kilometers (about 14 miles). Just a minute later, USGS reported a
second 7.5 magnitude earthquake, with a depth of 10 kilometers
(about 6 miles) and an epicenter 16 kilometers (10 miles) southwest
of Moron.
The one-two punch of the quakes, combined with the shallow seismic
movements, amplified the destruction, said Marcos Ferreira, a
geophysicist and researcher at the Geological Survey of Brazil.
“It is as if I am screaming and then someone starts screaming, too.
That amplifies the vibration and adds to the potential hazard,”
Ferreira said.
Venezuela residents reeling from quakes
During the quakes, people ran from swaying buildings. Many were
stunned Thursday morning as they saw buildings reduced to skeletons,
furniture hanging out of windows and helicopters circling overhead.
In La Guaira, Cristian Carreño stared at his charred apartment
building tilting precariously to one side.
“I lost everything,” he said. “There are people still inside, I
imagine, that couldn’t get out. It’s incredibly devastating.”
In downtown Caracas, hundreds spent the night huddled in parks,
parking lots and other open spaces.
“We were afraid the buildings would collapse on us,” said María
Cristina Díaz, a 41-year-old janitor. “My mother, my daughter and I
were cold. We didn’t sleep a wink.”
Parts of the capital lost power and cellphone service, Rodríguez
said. Subway services were suspended and natural gas was shut off,
she said. Classes will also be canceled for several days, and the
Ministry of Education said some school buildings would be used as
shelters and donation centers.
Families began posting missing-person flyers with photos of loved
ones, while others shared handwritten lists of names as they
searched for loved ones. Venezuelans living abroad struggled to make
contact with relatives.
Shortly after United Nations officials in Venezuela called on the
government to lift social media restrictions so people can get
potentially life-saving information, Venezuelans in the country were
able to access X. The site had been blocked by Maduro since August
2024, in an attempt to suppress the exchange of information among
those who rejected his claim of victory in the July presidential
election.
Several governments offered assistance
Rodríguez declared a state of emergency in an address to the nation
late Wednesday. She said the government was creating a $200 million
reconstruction fund for damaged hospitals and homes.
Leaders from Mexico, Qatar, Brazil, Spain, Portugal, Canada vowed to
send aid. A number of shipments were already on the way Thursday.
Aid included emergency and military personnel, canine and search
teams, medical supplies, water purifiers, airplanes and drones.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who spoke to Rodríguez
following the quake, said the United States was “immediately”
deploying search and rescue teams, medical resources other
assistance, though he acknowledged the closure of Venezuela's main
airport created logistical challenges.
“We have a whole-of-government response. It’ll be big; it’ll be
fast; and it’ll be effective,” Rubio said.
___
Janetsky reported from Mexico City. Associated Press journalists
Regina Garcia Cano, Mauricio Savarese, Anna-Catherine Brigida,
Danica Coto, Clara Preve and Alexandra Olson contributed to this
report.
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