The death toll from Venezuela’s earthquakes has reached 1,430, with 3,238 injured people.
The first earthquake with a magnitude of 7.2 struck at 18:04 local time (22:04 GMT) 23km south-east of Yumare. The second 7.5-magnitude quake hit in a similar location just 38 seconds later, which caused untold damage to homes and buildings in several parts of the country.
The states of Trujillo, Yaracuy, Carabobo, Aragua, and Miranda remain the most affected.
Emergency crews are searching through the rubble of collapsed buildings as many people are still missing
It is pertinent to mention that there is a 37 per cent probability of 10,000 to 100,000 deaths. According to the United Nations’ migration agency, nearly 7 million people could be affected.
What caused the earthquake in Venezuela?
Two earthquakes were caused by shallow strike-slip faulting near the plate boundary. This type of earthquake occurs when two blocks of the Earth’s crust slide horizontally past one another, releasing energy that generates seismic waves.
The country has experienced devastating earthquakes throughout its history. Almost 30,000 people were killed in 1812 when a powerful earthquake devastated the cities of Merida and Caracas. More recently, a major earthquake struck Caracas in 1967, causing several high-rise buildings to collapse and killing about 240 people, many of them in central districts of the capital.
More aftershocks are likely in the coming days.
