POWERFUL BACK-TO-BACK EARTHQUAKES STRIKE VENEZUELA, CAUSING WIDESPREAD DAMAGE AND BUILDING COLLAPSES. (PHOTO).

 Powerful back-to-back earthquakes strike Venezuela, causing widespread damage and building collapses

 Two powerful, successive earthquakes struck Venezuela on Wednesday evening, leaving a trail of widespread destruction, collapsing structures, and sending panicked communities fleeing into the streets. Among the strongest seismic events to hit the nation in more than a century, the back-to-back 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude tremors occurred just after 6:00 p.m. local time, with epicenters located near the coastal community of Morón. The impact was felt across the region, triggering building evacuations as far away as parts of northern Colombia and cities in Brazil’s Amazon basin, roughly 1,700 kilometers from Caracas.

Acting President Delcy Rodríguez declared a state of emergency and confirmed extensive damage across multiple states, though initial official assessments did not include specific casualty figures. The earthquakes severely impacted infrastructure, forcing the closure of Simón Bolívar International Airport, shutting down subway lines, and cutting off natural gas services in the capital. Classes have been suspended nationwide for several days, and select schools are being converted into emergency shelters and supply distribution centers. Medical personnel have been ordered to report to hospitals to handle incoming casualties.

In Caracas, residents described intense lateral swaying that threw objects from shelves and collapsed external building walls, exposing home interiors to the streets. Plumes of dust rose over several heavily populated neighborhoods, and falling power poles and debris blocked major thoroughfares. Blackouts and a widespread loss of cellular network coverage compounded the crisis, cutting off communications for anxious families, including the millions of Venezuelans living abroad. Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello urged residents to remain outdoors to protect themselves from potentially hazardous aftershocks, noting that emergency rescue protocols have been fully activated.

In the coastal state of Falcón, localized rescue efforts were immediately underway, with local officials reporting 32 hospitalizations and a search-and-rescue operation for at least 15 individuals trapped under rubble hours after the event. Initial tsunami warnings issued for the Caribbean region were quickly canceled. International support materialized rapidly following the disaster, with neighboring countries and global leaders, including representatives from the United States, Chile, El Salvador, and Ecuador, pledging immediate humanitarian assistance and disaster relief resources to aid in the recovery.