Venezuela quake toll tops 900, search intensifies for hundreds trapped

Desperate Venezuelans and rescue teams raced to find survivors Friday as the death toll from twin earthquakes rose above 900. Foreign crews and aid were only beginning to reach devastated areas nearly two days after the quakes struck parts of Caracas and surrounding regions.

The government reported 172 people remained trapped, 920 were dead, and 3,360 injured. More than 50,000 people were reported missing. A weaker 4.9 magnitude temblor shook the ground again Friday afternoon, felt in the capital Caracas and nearby Maracay.

Frustration mounted over the slow pace of relief in hard-hit areas like La Guaira state. Residents and volunteers dug through rubble by hand amid shortages of heavy equipment and limited official presence. Jennifer Palacios, 25, said her son and five relatives remained buried in La Guaira city’s eight-tower Hugo Chavez housing complex. "It’s the community that has managed to get people out alive," she said. "We need them to bring cranes to move the slabs. There are still people trapped."

The disaster could politically impact interim President Delcy Rodriguez, who has sought to portray herself as an agent of change despite serving as vice president to the ousted Nicolas Maduro. A UN report estimated direct damage from the two quakes, magnitudes 7.2 and 7.5, at about $6.7 billion. The second quake was Venezuela’s most powerful in over a century.

“

It’s the community that has managed to get people out alive. We need them to bring cranes to move the slabs. There are still people trapped.

Reuters witnesses saw highways cracked by the quakes and dozens of buildings reduced to rubble. Some ruins were spray-painted with building names to aid rescuers. Volunteers ferried supplies on motorcycles from Caracas and Valencia. Despite initially thanking volunteers, Rodriguez and other officials later told people to stay away from La Guaira city due to clogged roads hindering rescue operations. They announced road closures starting at 8 p.m. except for official teams.

Lawyer Ricardo Trias, 73, sought a death certificate for his godson, Armando Lopez, 54, whose body was pulled from rubble Thursday night but remained at the site. "We want them to give us the body... here it will rot," said Trias. "No forensic authority has come."

In Catia la Mar, a town in La Guaira, Reuters witnesses saw people removing items from a damaged store. Police and the national guard did not intervene. Rodriguez, who took power after the United States captured her predecessor in January, pledged a major relief deployment. Venezuela’s oil production was not affected.

“

We want them to give us the body ... we can’t take it and here it will rot. No forensic authority has come.