The death toll from two consecutive strong earthquakes in Venezuela has risen to 1,430, while rescue teams are intensifying efforts to find survivors even as the golden rescue window is nearing its end.
On Saturday, 27 Jun 2026 GMT+7, Jorge Rodriguez, a senior Venezuelan parliament member, announced on state television that the death toll from the two powerful earthquakes that struck Wednesday evening (local time) has risen to 1,430, with 3,238 injured.
Rodriguez stated that this earthquake event is "the most severe disaster the republic has faced in 123 years," and that over 430 aftershocks have followed.
In addition to updating the death and injury counts, he revealed that currently 3,142 families are residing in temporary shelters.
Rodriguez urged citizens to stay in their homes and avoid traveling to La Guaira, the area hardest hit, describing it as "severely damaged and devastated."
Josh Makabuk, an engineer from the UK charity Search and Rescue Assistance in Disasters (Saraid), said that his team is actively supporting rescue operations in Venezuela.
Although the "golden period" for rescuing survivors—the first 72 hours after the disaster—is nearly over, Makabuk believes "there is no fixed deadline" and that "every hour counts," as "the chance of survival decreases continuously with time."
Makabuk, who has direct experience from the major Turkey-Syria earthquake in 2023, added that the latest survivor his team rescued was found "after more than 100 hours," though such "miraculous" rescues are "extremely rare."
Follow international news:https://www.thairath.co.th/news/foreign
Source:bbc