Two powerful earthquakes have struck Venezuela near the capital, killing at least 164 people and injuring nearly 1,000, its interim President Delcy Rodríguez has said.
Rescuers are searching through rubble in Caracas and the nearby coastal city of La Guaira. People could be heard calling for help from under the debris of damaged buildings.
The first 7.2-magnitude quake was followed seconds later by an even stronger 7.5-magnitude one, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS), with both occurring close to the surface, making destruction more severe.
Venezuela lies over the meeting point of two tectonic plates and the earthquakes were likely caused by the sudden release of friction between them.
Rodríguez has declared a state of emergency and several countries have pledged to help the rescue efforts.
The disaster serves as the first test of Venezuela's new relationship with the US since President Donald Trump ordered the capture of its President Nicolás Maduro in January.
The first earthquake – centred 20.3km below the surface – struck at 18:04 local time (22:04 GMT) on Wednesday.
It was a national holiday in Venezuela, so more people would have been at home than on a normal weekday. Footage shared on social media showed residents rushing into the streets.
The second struck close by at a depth of 10km, according to USGS data.
Alan Chung, a schoolteacher in Caracas, told the BBC he saw "a cloud of dust" and electricity lines "exploding" after leaving the restaurant he had been in when they hit.
There have been 30 aftershocks following the two earthquakes, Rodríguez told state-run television channel Venezolana de Televisión.
Images emerging from Venezuela show buildings badly damaged or collapsed due to the tremors.
Rodríguez said La Guaira, a region north of the capital, had been the worst hit area. The BBC has verified footage of a 10-storey hotel in the city reduced to rubble.
Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello said buildings had been brought down in Caracas, and that Trujillo, Yaracuy, Carabobo, Aragua and Miranda had also been affected.
Venezuela's main international airport in Maiquetía on the outskirts of Caracas has been closed due to serious damage, Rodríguez said. Video from inside the terminal showed dust and debris falling from the ceiling.
The USGS said: "High casualties and extensive damage are probable and the disaster is likely widespread."
It estimated there was a 44% chance of more than 10,000 deaths and a 30% chance of more than 100,000 as a result of the earthquakes, based on a range of factors including previous, similar quakes and the size of the nearby population.
These figures were issued to help the emergency response and are not an exact prediction. They were calculated based on previous earthquakes an with similar characteristics, as well and other factors such as the size and depth of each quake.
Other elements play into the potential injuries and deaths, including the quality of the buildings and the time of day the quakes hit.
Caracas-based journalist Luis Hernandez told BBC Newsday that assessing the true scale of the damage would be difficult, with power cuts and internet failures complicating the situation.
"Due to the economic crisis in the country, it is very difficult for us to assess," he said.
Cabello told VTV that the Altamira and Los Palos Grandes neighbourhoods of Caracas were the worst hit.
The two were also among the worst-affected in 1967, when the last major earthquake to hit the Venezuelan capital struck, killing 200 people.
The second earthquake is the strongest to hit Venezuela since 1900, USGS records show.
"It's the strongest quake I've ever felt in my life," said BBC Mundo's Nicole Kolste.
Kolster, who lives on the seventh floor of an apartment building in Los Palos Grandes, added: "It was so strong that I thought the building was going to fall on top of me."
Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado wrote on X: "My heart, my infinite embrace, and my prayers are with every Venezuelan home in these hours of anguish."
Rodríguez said rescuers were working to reach survivors, with support being sent from the US, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Mexico and Qatar.
US President Donald Trump said he had instructed his government "to get ready to move quickly" in response to the earthquakes.
"The two major earthquakes that just hit the great people of Venezuela are both massive in scale and have left a devastating number of deaths," he wrote on Truth Social.
The US "stands ready, willing and able to help!" he added.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the US was "immediately deploying search and rescue teams, medical resources and humanitarian assistance".
The Trump administration has sought to reshape relations with Venezuela since the seizure of Maduro, a longtime critic of the US, and early on threw its support behind his former lieutenant Rodríguez.
Meanwhile, Colombians reportedly felt the earthquake hundreds of kilometres away in the capital, Bogotá, where some people were evacuated as a precaution.
Additional reporting by Esme Stallard
The shallow quakes occurred within seconds of one another, exacerbating the damage caused.
Rescuers were on the site of a collapsed building in Caracas searching for survivors after back-to-back earthquakes shook the capital.
Video filmed by BBC reporters, contributors and locals shows the aftermath, as frantic residents evacuate.
The deal with General Electric is the latest sign of co-operation between US firms and Venezuela's interim government.
Niño Guerrero was killed in a "swift and lethal kinetic strike," the US President wrote in a social media post.
Copyright 2026 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.
About the Author
