CARACAS, Venezuela — Two powerful earthquakes struck Venezuela on Wednesday, causing widespread destruction, damaging or collapsing numerous buildings, and leaving at least 1,430 people dead and more than 3,200 injured. Hundreds remain missing as rescue efforts continue amid growing concerns over the country’s preparedness for such a disaster.
The tremors, which included a magnitude 7.5 quake occurring just 39 seconds after the first, affected a broad area stretching from Caracas, the capital, to coastal regions including the port city of La Guaira. According to experts, the event marks Venezuela’s deadliest earthquake in over a century, potentially surpassing the 1929 Cumaná earthquake and tsunami, which claimed approximately 1,600 lives. Some specialists warn that casualties could reach up to 50,000, citing estimates from the U.S. Geological Survey that suggest a 44% probability of a death toll between 10,000 and 100,000.
Structural engineers and seismologists have long expressed concerns about Venezuela’s vulnerability to earthquakes due to a combination of geological and construction-related factors. Much of the country, including urban centers built on soft soil, features tall concrete buildings often lacking adequate seismic reinforcement. A 2023 study coauthored by Eduardo Núñez Castellanos highlighted that buildings over 20 stories tall constructed on soft soils to minimum code requirements have an over 80% chance of collapse during a strong earthquake. This risk was realized in the recent disaster, with many mid- and high-rise buildings succumbing, particularly those with "soft-story" designs—where the ground floor is structurally weaker than upper floors.
Experts cite multiple reasons for the extensive damage, including outdated seismic safety codes, insufficient enforcement of construction regulations, and a practice of prioritizing investor profit over building integrity. Núñez attributes some of the failure to weakened institutional oversight amid Venezuela’s ongoing political and economic instability. Alejandro Giuliano, former director of Venezuela’s National Institute of Seismic Prevention, emphasized the critical need to respect seismic-resistant construction standards, noting that the country’s historic record of earthquakes should not have made the recent tragedy a surprise.
The geophysical context also contributed to the disaster. Venezuela lies along the boundary between the Caribbean and South American tectonic plates, with the Boconó fault system implicated as the origin of the initial rupture. The seismic energy propagated northeast, affecting Caracas and La Guaira, where structural damage was pronounced. Feliciano De Santis, president of the Venezuelan Geological Society, described the extensive collapses in La Guaira as unusual, suggesting hidden structural weaknesses in older buildings and failures in maintenance and permitting processes.
Venezuela’s last major earthquake in Caracas occurred in 1967, killing 240 people, and while limited seismic events have occurred since, preparedness and retrofitting efforts have lagged. Michael Schmitz, a geophysics professor involved in prior seismic risk assessments for Caracas, stated that funding shortages and governmental instability hindered initiatives aimed at earthquake readiness, including proposed studies to identify vulnerable buildings in La Guaira.
The earthquake has underscored longstanding challenges facing Venezuela—balancing the need for affordable housing against building safety, managing weakening institutional controls, and confronting natural hazards that have long threatened the region. Rescue operations continue as authorities and international teams work to assess and respond to one of the country’s most devastating natural disasters in recent history.