Venezuela quake survivors describe devastation: "Everything collapsed"

Survivors of powerful earthquakes that struck Venezuela recounted harrowing scenes of destruction, with one journalist describing how "everything collapsed." The tremors, measuring 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude, were the strongest to impact the nation in more than 100 years, causing widespread devastation.

Journalist Tony Frangie was in a Caracas elevator when the first temblor hit. He described the experience as "quite terrifying" and recounted pressing buttons in a desperate attempt to escape before the elevator doors opened in the building's basement. Upon exiting, he witnessed his building shaking violently. Fortunately, the structure remained standing, and he spent hours with neighbors and family in the aftermath.

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everything collapsed

Initially unaware of the full scale of the disaster, Frangie learned online that the earthquakes were powerful enough to be felt in neighboring Colombia and Brazil, even triggering tsunami alerts. The state of La Guaira, on the country's northern coast, bore the brunt of the impact. Venezuelan Acting President Delcy Rodríguez reported at least 164 fatalities and over 900 injuries, warning that the death toll is likely to increase as rescue operations proceed in collapsed buildings.

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the quake was quite terrifying.

Rodríguez has declared a state of emergency in response to the disaster. Resident Antonio Bermudez shared his experience of escaping his home just before it crumbled. "I started to move, I looked for shelter under a column. I was between my room and the shower. It shook harder and harder," Bermudez said. "I held onto the wall and the building started to come down."

The U.S. is deploying search teams, medical resources, and humanitarian aid, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio offering full assistance to Venezuela. El Salvador has also extended its support. Experts noted that the two quakes occurring within a minute of each other likely gave many people insufficient time to evacuate their buildings between the initial and subsequent tremors. The quakes were also characterized as shallow, exacerbating the shaking.

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I started to move, I looked for shelter under a column. I was between my room and the shower. It shook harder and harder. I held onto the wall and the building started to come down.