Venezuela earthquake death toll rises to 1,719; thousands still missing
The death toll from powerful earthquakes in Venezuela has risen to 1,719, with over 5,000 injured and tens of thousands still unaccounted for. Rescue operations continue amid dwindling hope.
Jorge Rodriguez, president of Venezuela's National Assembly, announced on Monday that the earthquake death toll has reached 1,719. He added that 5,034 people were injured and 15,866 left homeless. Acting President Delcy Rodriguez stated that rescue and recovery efforts are ongoing, emphasizing that hope remains for finding survivors.
Rodriguez said school classes would be suspended for another week and that electricity supply in La Guaira had been restored to 75 percent. The government thanked civilian volunteers for delivering aid but tightened road access to improve emergency vehicle movement.
Earlier, Jorge Rodriguez reported that the death toll rose by 20 on Sunday to 1,450, with 3,150 injured, 12,721 displaced, and 774 buildings collapsed. Families and volunteers had spent days pulling survivors and bodies from rubble before the arrival of over 2,600 foreign rescue workers.
The U.S. Geological Survey estimated that more than 10,000 deaths were possible from the magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 quakes, which would place them among Latin America's deadliest in the last century. A Swiss rescue team leader noted that the 72-hour window for finding survivors expired Saturday evening.
U.S. rescue crews saved an infant on Saturday, while Colombian and Mexican teams rescued two 11-year-old boys. One boy, Moises, was trapped three meters deep; his mother and sister were killed.
Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado announced plans to return to the country, despite U.S. officials' concerns that it is too soon after the disaster. Meanwhile, Venezuela's largest refinery, Amuay, shut down operations due to a power outage.
