Venezuela quake deaths rise to 1,943, lawmaker says

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Subscribed with another email? Logout and Login with that one. Account subscription benefits alongside Premium Stories, Editorials, Opinions and more. Unlock these with Subscription Updated - July 01, 2026 05:36 am IST - CARACAS Men search through the rubble of a building that collapsed in the twin earthquakes that struck La Guaira, Venezuela, on June 30, 2026. | Photo Credit: AP Fatalities ‌due to ​twin earthquakes ⁠that struck Venezuela now ‌stand ‌at 1,943, ⁠lawmaker ⁠Jorge Rodriguez said ​on ‌Tuesday (June 30, 2026), adding that the number of ‌injured ​almost doubled to ⁠10,571. The number of official rescues has dropped dramatically in the last three days, the government said, from 5,380 people saved in the first two days after the quakes to just four people found alive on Monday (June 29, 2026) by authorities. The prime window for finding earthquake survivors is typically 48 to 72 hours, but it is possible to survive longer depending on factors such as temperature and access to water or food. The sole survivor rescued by Tuesday afternoon was a toddler who had been trapped for six days under a collapsed building, said Jorge Rodríguez, the president of the National Assembly. Those numbers do not include the many rescues carried out across the country by volunteer groups that, frustrated with the government’s sluggish response, scrambled to save their trapped loved ones days before the arrival of expert international teams. Meanwhile, aid groups warned that Venezuela’s fragile healthcare system is being pushed to its limits nearly a week after two powerful earthquakes, with damaged and understaffed hospitals getting overwhelmed by the injured and infectious diseases flaring in the disaster zone. Venezuelan officials say that more than 15,800 people have been affected by the earthquakes — a figure that reflects the official number of displaced people, U.N. refugee agency spokesperson Carlotta Wolf said.