Officials in Venezuela say the confirmed death toll from last week’s twin earthquakes in the northwest has climbed to 1,719, with thousands still missing or trapped beneath rubble, reports Al Jazeera.
National Assembly leader Jorge Rodriguez told state television on Monday that injuries have risen to 5,034 and 15,866 people are now homeless after back‑to‑back magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 quakes.
A 4.6‑magnitude aftershock struck earlier Monday, registered by the US Geological Survey at a depth of 10km north of Caraballeda on the Caribbean coast. Rodriguez said there were no immediate reports of fresh damage.
“I don’t know when we’ll have a moment of true peace,” said Concepcion Hernandez, 51, who evacuated her apartment in Caracas after the tremor.
Rescue operations remain concentrated in La Guaira, the northern port city hardest hit in a country already mired in political and economic crisis. Authorities estimate tens of thousands remain missing. Some 30,000 Venezuelan emergency workers and 2,700 foreign experts are involved.
The critical 72‑hour window for rescues expired Saturday night, but survivors continue to be pulled out. On Sunday, Interim President Delcy Rodriguez said, “Today we have recovered people alive and, therefore, operations are not being suspended. We always maintain hope.”
Support has arrived from 24 countries, delivering more than 500 tonnes of supplies, 2,700 personnel and 86 search‑dog teams.
Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele highlighted the rescue of 21‑year‑old Aaron Levi, trapped for 106 hours in La Guaira, crediting joint teams from Venezuela, Mexico and El Salvador.
Al Jazeera’s Teresa Bo reported from Catia La Mar that families have marked collapsed homes where bodies remain unrecovered, waiting outside for retrieval.
Aid deliveries of food and water have only just begun reaching the worst‑hit areas, where many residents camp outdoors.
The disaster is seen as a major test for both the international response and Venezuela’s new government under Delcy Rodriguez, who assumed the presidency after the US military’s abduction of Nicolas Maduro in January.
