Chaos in major city as huge earthquake rocks buildings yet again
A huge earthquake has once again rocked Caracas in Venezuela as the country reels from multiple aftershocks. An earthquake alert on Monday morning reported a magnitude of 7.5 in the north of the country, covering areas including the capital city, Valencia, and Maracay.
The aftershock was reported at 7am local time, following last week's earthquake that killed over 1,400 people and left thousands more injured. Wednesday’s 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude quakes were among the strongest to hit Venezuela for more than a century and could be felt throughout the region.
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The US Geological Survey said the first 7.2 magnitude tremor struck west of Moron on the Caribbean coast at a depth of about 14 miles, followed a minute later by the 7.5 magnitude one with a depth of about six miles and an epicentre 10 miles southwest of Moron.
Buildings were evacuated in places as far away as the Amazon in Brazil, about 1,050 miles from Caracas.
The northern coastal region of La Guaira saw some of the heaviest damage, with aid efforts hampered by the closure of the country’s main airport.
Acting President Delcy Rodriguez declared a state of emergency and announced a $200 million (£151.6 million) fund for the reconstruction of hospitals and homes.
Among the damaged buildings was the British Embassy in Caracas, located on the 11th floor of an office block in the northeast of the city. The building was subsequently closed, the Foreign Office said.
All UK staff in Venezuela are said to be safe and accounted for. The number of British nationals in the South American country is in the low hundreds, and there have been no reports of Britons killed or injured, it is understood.
A specialist team of British crisis-response volunteers have been sent to help, though they ended up getting stuck in Madrid Airport for over 24 hours.
Serve On, a UK-based charity, has a team of 11 people and one dog trying to get to Caracas. The team has seismic and acoustic equipment that can sense the movement of deeply buried victims.
Their team leader, Vernon Young, told the Press Association they are desperate to get out to Venezuela "as soon as possible".
However, Simon Bolivar International Airport, the only international airport serving Caracas, was also damaged by the earthquakes, so travel into the country is "severely affected".