Two powerful earthquakes struck Venezuela on Wednesday, June 24, 2026, causing buildings to collapse and sending frightened residents into the streets.
The U.S. Geological Survey reported a magnitude 7.2 earthquake followed about a minute later by a stronger magnitude 7.5 quake near the country’s Caribbean coast, according to The Associated Press.
The epicenters were near Morón, about 104 miles west of Caracas. The second quake had a depth of about 6 miles, according to the U.S. Tsunami Warning System.
In Caracas, residents ran from shaking buildings as walls collapsed, power lines shook and debris blocked streets.
Acting President Delcy Rodríguez said the earthquakes damaged several states. She did not immediately release national figures for deaths, injuries or destroyed homes.
Rodríguez said Simón Bolívar International Airport, the country’s main airport, was damaged badly enough to close. Schools were also closed, and some were being prepared as shelters and donation centers.
Emergency crews searched damaged buildings as families looked for missing loved ones. In Falcon state, Gov. Víctor Clark said 32 people had been hospitalized and 15 people were still trapped more than four hours after the quake, AP reported.
Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello said the shaking was felt in several states and urged people to help children and older adults.
Cabello also asked residents to stay outside if buildings were unsafe because aftershocks could cause more damage.
The USGS Earthquake Hazards Program monitors earthquakes and estimates their possible impact through damage and casualty models.
Early reports citing USGS modeling said the agency issued a red alert for shaking-related deaths and economic losses. The alert warned that high casualties and extensive damage were probable.
Those figures are projections, not a confirmed death toll. Venezuelan authorities had not released an official national casualty count as of the early reports.
The U.S. Tsunami Warning System said the 7.5 magnitude quake happened near the coast of Venezuela at 22:05 UTC.
Officials later issued a final message saying the tsunami threat had passed and there was no further threat from the earthquake.
The bulletin said minor sea level changes could still happen near the earthquake area for several hours.
The back-to-back quakes were among the strongest to strike Venezuela in more than 100 years.
Venezuela sits near the boundary between the Caribbean Plate and the South American Plate, a region where earthquakes can happen even though they are less common than along Latin America’s Pacific coast.
The full scale of the damage may take days to confirm. For now, officials are focused on rescue operations, medical care and keeping residents away from unstable buildings.