At least 1,430 people were killed and more than 3,200 were injured as a pair of powerful earthquakes struck Venezuela on Wednesday evening, officials said on Friday.
The two quakes -- a 7.2 magnitude one followed just seconds later by a 7.5 -- struck the coast of Venezuela, knocking down buildings in Caracas, the capital, and sending residents racing into the street.
Responders are undertaking "intensive rescue operations" on Thursday, searching for people thought to be under the rubble, acting President Delcy Rodriguez said.
Nearly 60,000 buildings damaged or destroyed, researchers say satellite data shows
Researchers estimate nearly 60,000 buildings were damaged or destroyed by the twin earthquakes in Venezuela on June 24th.
Damage analysis of Copernicus Sentinel-1 satellite data by researchers at Oregon State University’s Conflict Ecology lab "estimates approximately 58,870 buildings were likely damaged or destroyed across the affected region, as of the most recent satellite pass on 25 June 2026."The analysis is a preliminary "rapid assessment" conducted with the first available images after the earthquakes but gives an early indication as to the scale of the damage, researchers said.
Satellite analysis by the same researchers has previously been used to estimate damage in Ukraine, Gaza, Lebanon and Iran amongst others.
-ABC News' Victoria Beaule
Death toll over 1,400, official says
The death toll in Venezuela rose to 1,430 on Saturday, Jorge Rodriguez, the leader of Venezuela’s National Assembly, said on state TV.
US official gives update on American search and rescue team missions
The two federal search and rescue teams that were sent to Venezuela at max deployment levels are currently on the ground there pulling people from collapsed buildings, a U.S. official told ABC News Saturday.
"We heard that survivors were found in the last few hours, and they're going to work as hard as they can over the next few days out in the field," the official said.
The official then said that two teams from Miami-Dade, Florida, had been activated and federalized, marking the first time in over a decade the State Department had deployed USAR teams beyond USA-1 and USA-2.
The senior administration official announced that U.S. teams had repaired one of the runways at Simón Bolivar airport.
The official then said that two teams from Miami-Dade, Florida, had been activated and federalized, marking the first time in over a decade the State Department had deployed USAR teams beyond USA-1 and USA-2.
The senior administration official announced that U.S. teams had repaired one of the runways at Simón Bolivar airport.
In addition to $150 million already committed to the Venezuela earthquakes response, the official said the Trump administration was preparing "an additional package right now of nine figures that we're going to announce in the next day or so."
-ABC News' Shannon Kingston
Search for quake's survivors continues, approaches 72 hours, acting president says
Emergency response teams from Venezuelan and other countries were working early on Saturday, combing the rubble for survivors after two powerful earthquakes struck the capital and nearby cities on Wednesday evening, the acting president said.
Acting President Delcy Rodriguiz said in an update at 1 a.m. local time that electric services had been restored to about 60% of what they had been prior to the quakes.
More than 14,000 officials were working in La Guaira, a hard-hit area north of Caracas, the capital, Rodriguiz said. Access to that area remained restricted as military and other officials searched the wreckage, she said.
A "saturation" of food and water had been surging into areas where supplies were needed, she added.
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