7.5 magnitude earthquake collapses buildings in Caracas, rescue ongoing
Agency; A catastrophic pair of back-to-back earthquakes, measuring 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude, struck northwest Venezuela in rapid succession on Wednesday evening, causing multiple large structures to collapse in the capital city of Caracas, destroying power lines, and triggering urgent tsunami warnings across parts of the Caribbean. The consecutive tremors, categorized by seismologists as a rare and highly destructive “seismic doublet,” are among the most powerful earthquakes to hit the South American nation in more than a century.
The United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported that the disaster began shortly after 6:05 p.m. local time when a magnitude 7.2 foreshock struck at a depth of 13 kilometers along Venezuela’s Caribbean coast, just west of the town of Morón. Barely 39 seconds later, an even more violent magnitude 7.5 mainshock ripped through the same region from a dangerously shallow depth of 10 kilometers. The combined force sent shockwaves tearing through central Venezuela, swaying skyscrapers, cutting off cell phone signals, and sending dust clouds billowing over major urban centers.
In the capital city of Caracas, located roughly 168 kilometers (104 miles) east of the epicenter, the impact was immediate and severe. Entire walls sheared off residential buildings, exposing interiors to the streets below, while several multi-story structures completely pancaked. Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello addressed the nation on state television, confirming “alarming situations” in Caracas’s upscale Altamira and Chacao neighborhoods, where rescue teams are actively scaling mountains of rubble to search for survivors. In eastern Caracas, Chacao Mayor Gustavo Duque confirmed that at least 16 people had been injured and fatalities had been recorded, though an exact death toll has yet to be finalized.
Simultaneously, scenes of absolute chaos unfolded at the Simón Bolívar International Airport in Maiquetía. Social media footage captured terrified travelers screaming and sprinting through terminal corridors as chunks of the ceiling and heavy debris crashed down around them. Airport authorities immediately suspended all flight operations to evaluate severe structural damage to the main runways and terminals. Outside on the streets of Caracas, millions of residents evacuated into open areas, remaining outdoors long after sunset as continuous, strong aftershocks threatened to bring down structurally compromised towers.
The immense energy of the dual quakes prompted the U.S. Tsunami Warning System to issue immediate tsunami threats for Venezuela, Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao, alongside urgent tsunami advisories for Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands due to the risk of hazardous currents. While ocean data allowed meteorologists to cancel the tsunami alerts roughly an hour later, the humanitarian crisis on land is just beginning. The USGS issued a grim preliminary assessment following the mainshock, warning that widespread devastation is highly probable, with statistical models estimating potential casualties could range between 10,000 and 100,000 as emergency services struggle to navigate blocked roads and widespread blackouts.