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Venezuela earthquakes live updates: At least 164 dead, almost 1,000 injured after massive twin tremors

Two powerful earthquakes struck Venezuela on Wednesday evening.

Residents walk through the rubble of damaged apartment buildings following the twin 7.2 and 7.5-magnitude earthquakes that struck the country, in Catia la Mar, Venezuela, June 25, 2026.
Ronald Pena/EPA/Shutterstock

Last Updated: June 25, 2026, 1:05 PM EDT

Dozens of people were killed and hundreds of others were injured as a pair of powerful earthquakes struck Venezuela on Wednesday evening, acting President Delcy Rodriguez said in a televised address.

The two quakes -- a 7.2 magnitude one followed just seconds later by a 7.5 -- struck the coast of Venezuela, knocking down buildings in Caracas, the capital, and sending residents racing into the street.

Emergency responders were undertaking "intensive rescue operations" early on Thursday, searching for people thought to be under the rubble, Rodriguez said.

Key Headlines

11 minutes ago
Quakes may become most devastating in Venezuela's modern history
30 minutes ago
US Southern Command to support government relief operation
1 hour and 11 minutes ago
Main airport closed until at least Friday
1 hour and 14 minutes ago
More than 25,000 people reported missing

Here's how the news is developing.

8:56 AM EDT

US sending search and rescue teams, Rubio says

Secretary of State Rubio said he spoke with Venezuela’s acting president, Delcy Rodriguez, and he said the U.S. is sending search and rescue teams.

“We’re maybe already deploying search and rescue teams from Fairfax County, Virginia, and Los Angeles. There'll be some others we'll add,” Rubio said.

People stand before damaged apartment buildings following an earthquake in Catia La Mar, La Guaira state, some 30km north-west of Caracas, June 25, 2026.
Federico Parra/AFP via Getty Images

"That’s their most immediate need right now, is search and rescue efforts. They have a bunch of collapsed buildings, and so they'll need a lot of help in terms of digging through that,” he said.

"The airport there is badly damaged, so we'll have to rely on the Department of War to deploy assets there, and then we're also helping them with some overhead imagery, especially in coastal areas where they don't have full visibility over what the damage has been and what the impact has been,” Rubio said.

A woman walks past a building damaged during an earthquake in La Guaira, Venezuela, June 25, 2026.
Pedro Mattey/AP Photo

He said the administration would have "a better assessment" of Venezuela’s longer-term needs “when we're on the ground.”

Rubio declined to put a dollar amount on the aid the U.S. would commit to Venezuela, saying it was too soon.

He said Qatar, El Salvador, Chile and other countries have also offered to help.

-ABC News’ Shannon Kingston

6:29 AM EDT

Death toll rises to at least 164 after quakes, president reportedly says

At least 164 people were dead and another 971 people were injured after two strong earthquakes struck Venezuela on Wednesday evening, acting President Delcy Rodriguez said early on Thursday, according to The Associated Press.

-ABC News' Jamie Dorrington

5:49 AM EDT

Rescue efforts underway after 2 strong quakes hit Venezuela

Emergency crews were searching early on Thursday through rubble in Venezuela for potential survivors after two strong quakes struck on Wednesday evening.

Acting President Delcy Rodriguez said she had declared a state of emergency, saying the quakes had turned at least one area -- the state of La Guaira -- to a "disaster zone."

Fanny Nasri waits at the site of a collapsed building as emergency workers search for her son, Antonio Nasri, alongside Noemi Cordoba, who awaits news of her granddaughter, after an earthquake in Caracas, Venezuela, June 25, 2026.
Gaby Oraa/Reuters

"Dozens of buildings have collapsed there, about 30 kilometers north of Caracas, and we are currently carrying out intensive rescue operations to save lives," she said during a televised address, according to The Associated Press.