Rescue Teams Face Grim Task as Venezuela Quake Death Toll Tops 1,450

The critical 72-hour window for finding survivors of the powerful twin earthquakes that struck Venezuela had completely closed by Monday, leaving international teams facing a grim race against time to pull anyone else alive from the debris, according to Dawn and the South China Morning Post. The death toll has surpassed 1,450 and nearly 200 buildings have completely collapsed, both outlets reported.

A man and his teen son were found alive under the rubble on Sunday by French and American rescue teams in Caraballeda, a town about 40km north of Caracas, Dawn reported. The South China Morning Post additionally reported an 11-year-old boy rescued in Caraballeda on Saturday and a Colombian team saving another 11-year-old boy, Moises, trapped about 10 feet deep, with his mother and sister killed.

The rescue offered a glimmer of hope in an ongoing tragedy that has shaken a country already mired in an economic crisis, but tens of thousands of people were still reported missing, and the critical 72-hour window for rescuing trapped victims following a natural disaster has now passed, Dawn reported. Millions more people were feared to lack sanitation and other basic needs, according to both outlets.

The earthquakes, of magnitude 7.2 and 7.5, struck on Wednesday evening, causing 774 buildings to be badly damaged, including 189 that have totally collapsed, National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez said on Sunday, as cited by Dawn. The South China Morning Post reported that the US Geological Survey estimated more than 10,000 deaths were possible, which would place the quakes among Latin America’s deadliest of the last century.

Rescue teams from the United States, Mexico and elsewhere scrambled to save people as desperate residents dug by hand for relatives, Dawn reported. The South China Morning Post quoted a Salvadoran rescue worker who declined to give his name: “At this point, they are probably dead bodies. Thanks to God maybe we can find people still alive.”

Interim leader Delcy Rodriguez said in a post on X, accompanied by a video of the rescue, “Every life is a source of hope for Venezuela,” according to the South China Morning Post. The outlet also reported that Rodriguez thanked other countries for their aid, amid public outrage at the local response.

Both outlets stressed the somber and urgent tone of the situation, with Dawn describing a country also facing political upheaval after US forces captured former president Nicolas Maduro in January, and the South China Morning Post noting the quakes struck a country already mired in economic crisis.

Key Claims

  • Death toll from the earthquakes has risen to 1,450, with tens of thousands still missing (Dawn; South China Morning Post).
  • Nearly 200 buildings have completely collapsed (Dawn; South China Morning Post).
  • A newborn and two boys were pulled out alive from rubble after three days (Dawn; South China Morning Post).
  • The US Geological Survey estimated that more than 10,000 deaths are possible (South China Morning Post).
  • 24 countries sent 521 tonnes of supplies and 2,700 search-and-rescue personnel (Dawn).
  • The UN aid chief warned that the death toll could continue to soar (Dawn).
  • Up to 6.76 million people could be affected and require emergency shelter and services (Dawn).
  • The critical 72-hour window for rescuing trapped victims has passed (Dawn; South China Morning Post).