235 people dead, 4,300 injured in catastrophic earthquakes in Venezuela, search and rescue ops continue | World

The death count in the Venezuela monster earthquakes rose to 235 people on Friday, with more than 4,300 injured and thousands still missing as rescue teams and desperate residents searched through the rubble across the northern region. The two powerful earthquakes have devastated the country, leaving buildings reduced to rubble.

Health Minister Carlos Alvarado said authorities had received “around 235 patients who arrived without vital signs or died upon reaching our health facilities,” warning that the toll was likely to rise as thousands remain missing.

The twin earthquakes, measuring magnitudes 7.2 and 7.5, struck on Wednesday evening and were among the strongest to hit Venezuela in more than a century. The tremors were felt across neighbouring countries, prompting evacuations as far away as Brazil’s Amazon region.

In response to the disaster, the United States Treasury on Thursday temporarily eased some sanctions on Venezuela until October 23, allowing transactions related to earthquake relief efforts that would otherwise be prohibited.

Across the worst-hit areas, residents joined rescue efforts, digging through collapsed buildings in search of survivors as emergency crews struggled to reach affected communities.

Woman pulled out alive from debris

State television broadcast dramatic rescue operations, including the rescue of a woman trapped beneath a concrete slab, with only one of her bare feet visible before rescuers managed to pull her out alive.

However, many residents said official assistance was slow to arrive. In several areas outside Caracas, neighbours armed with shovels and their bare hands carried out rescue operations in the absence of heavy machinery.

“I want to know where my child is, whether he’s trapped or in a shelter,” said Dayana Delgado, whose eight-year-old son remains missing. She questioned why the heavy equipment promised by authorities had yet to reach the area.

Scenes of grief unfolded across the disaster zone. One mother collapsed in tears as the bodies of her three- and ten-year-old children were wrapped in blankets and carried away. Others called out the names of missing relatives or stood silently watching rescue workers sift through the debris.

The coastal state of La Guaira, home to Venezuela’s main international airport just north of Caracas, suffered some of the worst destruction. Damage to the airport forced its closure, further complicating relief operations.

Retired schoolteacher Juan Alberto Mendaño said he climbed over wreckage and past a body before spotting a woman trapped beneath debris, signalling for help with her hand.

“May God rescue her as quickly as possible,” he said. “When we heard her scream, there was nothing we could do.”

Offers of humanitarian aid poured in from countries around the world, including the United States, which captured former Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro in a surprise military operation earlier this year.

The earthquake has added to the mounting challenges facing acting President Delcy Rodríguez, who assumed office in January following Maduro’s arrest. Venezuela continues to grapple with a prolonged economic crisis, while Rodríguez’s government faces questions over its legitimacy from large sections of the population.

Also read: Videos depict panic, destruction, and horror after two earthquakes rattle Venezuela