Venezuela earthquake death toll surpasses 4,000 as recovery challenges mount
The death toll from Venezuela's twin earthquakes on June 24 has risen above 4,000, with thousands still missing. The UN has appealed for nearly $300 million in aid as the country faces a massive recovery effort hampered by a degraded economy.
Venezuela's government announced on Friday that the death toll from the devastating double earthquakes has exceeded 4,000. At least 4,118 people were killed and 16,740 injured in the back-to-back quakes on June 24 that flattened entire districts in the coastal state of La Guaira, according to parliament chief Jorge Rodriguez. Thousands remain missing. A 7.5-magnitude quake – the largest in Venezuela in over a century – struck 39 seconds after a 7.2-magnitude shock, leveling entire high-rise apartment blocks.
Although rescue teams have halted searches for survivors, family members continue to scour the ruins for their loved ones, hoping to give them a dignified burial. On Friday, a 3.0-magnitude quake in central Caracas caused momentary panic and led to building evacuations.
The scale of the recovery effort facing Venezuela is immense, as state services have been severely degraded by a prolonged economic crisis. On Wednesday, the United Nations issued an urgent appeal for nearly $300 million for earthquake relief operations to assist 1.3 million people in urgent need. Mobile kitchens, clinics, and field hospitals have been set up in the northern state of La Guaira, where most of the devastation occurred.
The UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction estimates direct physical damage to housing and infrastructure at around $37 billion. Venezuela's interim president, Delcy Rodríguez, has called for the release of frozen assets held abroad for recovery. On Wednesday, she asked King Charles III to release about 30 tons of Venezuelan gold frozen under UK sanctions.
Rodríguez has defended the government's emergency response, vowing the country would not descend into social unrest. However, many Venezuelans have expressed anger over what they see as the US-backed government's inadequate response before international teams arrived.
