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2 major earthquakes strike northern Venezuela, near Caracas

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Emma Bowman Rescuers search for victims in a collapsed building following an earthquake in Caracas on June 24, 2026.
− Juan Barreto/AFP via Getty Images hide caption Venezuela's acting President Delcy Rodríguez said Thursday that at least 164 people were killed and 971 were injured after two major, back-to-back earthquakes struck northern Venezuela, reducing many buildings to rubble in the nearby capital of Caracas.
+ Juan Barreto/AFP via Getty Images hide caption At least 164 people were killed and 971 injured after two major, back-to-back earthquakes struck northern Venezuela, toppling many buildings in the capital of Caracas and other cities.
− The death toll rose from 32 killed and 700 injured that Venezuelan authorities provided in the early hours of Thursday.
+ Venezuelan acting President Delcy Rodríguez announced the casualties in an interview Thursday with state broadcaster Telesur, a significant rise from an earlier death toll of 32. The toll is expected to increase as rescuers and emergency workers search through the rubble.
An initial earthquake at about 6 p.m.
− on Wednesday, a 7.2-magnitude foreshock, was followed less than a minute later by a 7.5-magnitude earthquake in the same area, according to the U.S.
+ on Wednesday, a 7.2-magnitude foreshock, was followed less than a minute later by a 7.5-magnitude earthquake around the same area, according to the U.S.
Geological Survey.
− Rodríguez said the initial toll was expected to increase as rescuers and emergency workers searched through the rubble.
+ Rodríguez has declared a state of emergency. She said several Venezuelan states sustained damage, with La Guairá, north of Caracas, the hardest-hit.
− She said La Guairá state was the most affected area and declared it a disaster zone.
+ "We can say that the state of La Guairá is experiencing a genuine tragedy and has become a disaster zone," she said.
− A United Nations humanitarian agency reported more than 100 buildings collapsed in La Guairá, which is 19 miles north of Caracas.
+ A United Nations humanitarian agency reported more than 100 buildings collapsed in La Guairá.
Rescue workers carry a person on a stretcher out of a collapsed building. Juan Barreto/Getty Images hide caption Rodríguez called for national unity to save lives. "Together we will overcome this tragedy," she said in a televised address.
− The epicenters, which USGS estimated to be about 3 miles apart, were near the town of Morón on Venezuela's Caribbean coast, some 100 miles west of Caracas.
+ Photos and video posted online showed leveled buildings, people running for safety and falling debris from structural damage at Simón Bolívar International Airport in Caracas. The airport has since closed.
− In the wake of the destruction, President Trump said he had instructed his administration to help Venezuela, saying that the earthquakes were "both massive in scale and have left a devastating number of deaths." A damaged building at Los Palos Grandes after a magnitude 7.2 foreshock struck Venezuela.
+ "When the earthquake started, I was in my house, and it was super hard," Venezuelan journalist María Graterol told NPR's All Things Considered, speaking from Caracas.
− Jesus Vargas/Getty Images hide caption "We will be there for our new and great friends.
+ "You could see how the walls were moving and everything was moving around." A damaged building at Los Palos Grandes after a magnitude 7.2 foreshock struck Venezuela.
− Early reports are not good!!!" Trump wrote on social media. The U.S.
+ Jesus Vargas/Getty Images hide caption She left her apartment and found people gathered in a public square.
− State Department said it mobilized a disaster assistance team and would be sending search and rescue teams, medical and humanitarian supplies and other resources to Venezuela.
+ "People were screaming because it was really, really, really hard," she said of the back-to-back quakes. Families with their pet cats waited outside in the street unable to go into their damaged buildings.
− Humanitarian aid, search and rescue missions and medical personnel were also offered by Colombia, Ecuador, Dominican Republic, Brazil, Chile and El Salvador as messages of support to Venezuelans poured in.
+ The epicenters, which USGS estimated to be about 3 miles apart, were near the town of Morón on Venezuela's Caribbean coast, some 100 miles west of Caracas.
− Rodriguez announced a $200 million reconstruction fund for hospitals and homes damaged by the earthquakes, as reported by the Associated Press.
+ The strongest of the "doublet," as the USGS described the twin quakes, is the largest earthquake to strike Venezuela since 1900, when a 7.7-magnitude quake hit the country, according to USGS.
− "When the earthquakes are this close together" in time, said Paul Earle, a seismologist at USGS, "it can be difficult to unravel the exact magnitudes and the exact locations, especially for the second event," due to the way the signals on seismograms overlap in these cases.
People run into a street following an earthquake in Caracas.
− Federico Parra/Getty Images hide caption Photos and video posted to social media showed leveled buildings, people running for safety, and falling debris from structural damage at Simón Bolívar International Airport in Caracas.
+ Federico Parra/Getty Images hide caption The total number of deaths and injuries is not yet clear.
− The airport has since closed.
+ USGS modeling estimated deaths could be in the thousands to tens of thousands, with economic losses reaching billions to tens of billions of dollars, according to USGS seismologist Paul Earle.
− The total number of deaths and injuries is not yet clear.
+ "This doesn't happen very often," Earle told NPR.
− On Wednesday evening, USGS modeling of the 7.5-magnitude earthquake estimated deaths could be in the thousands to tens of thousands, with economic losses reaching billions to tens of billions of dollars, Earle said.
+ "When they're right together it's hard to understand what would happen." Aftershocks have followed the earthquakes Wednesday and are likely to continue in the coming days.
− "This doesn't happen very often," Earle said.
+ A man jumps on a collapsed building after an earthquake in Caracas, Venezuela.
− "When they're right together it's hard to understand what would happen." A man jumps on a collapsed building after an earthquake in Caracas, Venezuela.
+ Adrian Naranjo/AP hide caption By USGS' estimate, there's a 40% chance that in the next week a 6-magnitude or larger earthquake would strike in the same region, Earle said, and an "almost certainty" of an earthquake measuring at least a magnitude 5. Countries around the world have been offering condolences and support in the recovery. President Trump said online he had instructed his administration to help Venezuela, saying the earthquakes were "both massive in scale and have left a devastating number of deaths." Evacuated people speak by phone waiting at Parque Central urban development complex.
− Adrian Naranjo/AP hide caption The strongest of the "doublet," as the USGS described the twin quakes, is the largest earthquake to strike Venezuela since 1900, when a 7.7-magnitude quake hit the country, according to USGS.
+ Jesus Vargas/Getty Images hide caption Rodríguez said U.S. officials have been in constant contact with her administration since the earthquakes. The disaster is a new test for Washington's role in Venezuela, coming more than five months after Trump sent forces to seize Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro from Caracas and said the U.S. would "run" the South American oil-producing country.
− About a half-hour after the Venezuela quakes, a 7.2-magnitude earthquake hit the east coast of Japan.
+ Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the administration is sending search and rescue teams from Fairfax County, Va., and Los Angeles.
− Earlier Wednesday, a 5.6-magnitude quake struck Northern California.
+ He said the U.S.
− There was no major damage reported in either quake.
+ is also providing overhead imagery of coastal areas where he said the Venezuelan government does not have full visibility.
− In Venezuela, significant aftershocks are likely to follow in the coming days.
+ "Those are the acute short-term needs over the next 48-72 hours because in search and rescue, you are trying to get to people while you can still save their lives. They are buried under rubble," Rubio said.
− Evacuated people speak by phone waiting at Parque Central urban development complex.
+ The U.S.
− Jesus Vargas/Getty Images hide caption According to USGS forecasting, there's a 40% chance that, in the next week, a 6-magnitude or larger earthquake will strike in the same region, Earle said, and an "almost certainty" of an earthquake measuring at least a magnitude 5.
+ military's Southern Command said it's supporting government relief operations with logistics and lifesaving capabilities.
− Tsunami warnings previously issued for Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands were recalled, and no such advisory was in effect as of Wednesday night.
+ The U.N.'s top humanitarian official, Tom Fletcher, said his office is coordinating the deployment of teams from around the world.
− On Wednesday evening, Venezuela's acting President Rodríguez declared a state of emergency, and said several Venezuelan states had sustained damage.
+ "Even before these earthquakes, nearly 8 million people in Venezuela were in need of humanitarian support," Fletcher said in a statement Thursday.
− She also called for unity, and urged "our population to remain calm."
+ "This disaster risks deepening existing vulnerabilities." Venezuela's interim president also announced an initial $200 million reconstruction fund, using resources from the International Monetary Fund, for hospitals and homes damaged by the earthquakes. This is a developing story that may be updated. Michele Kelemen, Alex Leff and Scott Detrow contributed to this story from Washington.