The Kabul Tribune (KT) — The death toll from two powerful earthquakes in Venezuela has risen to more than 230, with thousands injured and rescue teams continuing operations to locate people trapped under rubble, the Associated Press reported.
According to early assessments cited by the Associated
Press, more than 4,300 people have been injured, while search and rescue teams
are still working in affected areas to find hundreds of missing individuals
believed to be trapped under collapsed buildings.
The earthquakes struck late Wednesday within seconds of each
other. The first quake measured 7.2 in magnitude and hit the state of Carabobo,
near Venezuela’s capital Caracas, about 20 kilometers away. Thirty-nine seconds
later, a second and stronger quake measuring 7.5 magnitude followed, according
to the United States Geological Survey.
The USGS had warned shortly after the quakes that the death
toll could potentially rise into the thousands due to the scale of destruction
and population density in the affected regions.
Authorities reported widespread damage across multiple
areas, with buildings and infrastructure heavily impacted. The tremors were
felt across a large part of the country, causing panic among residents and
significant structural collapse in several cities.
Rescue operations remain ongoing, with emergency teams
racing against time to reach survivors trapped beneath debris. Officials say
the casualty figures may continue to rise as more remote and heavily affected
areas are reached.
