VENEZUELA QUAKE DEATH TOLL RISES ABOVE 4,300

Venezuelan officials said the confirmed death toll from the June 24 twin earthquakes has risen above 4,300, making the disaster one of the deadliest to hit the country in modern history.

Reuters reported Saturday that National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez said 4,333 people had been confirmed dead, with 315 of the victims still unidentified. Rodriguez also said 16,740 people had been injured.

The updated count marks another increase in the reported toll from the earthquakes, which struck Venezuela's north-central coast on June 24 and caused widespread destruction in La Guaira state and the Caracas area. Earlier official and humanitarian figures had already placed the number of deaths in the thousands, with rescue, shelter and public-health needs still unfolding more than two weeks after the disaster.

According to The Guardian, the back-to-back earthquakes were measured at magnitudes 7.2 and 7.5 and struck the coastal state of La Guaira, damaging or destroying entire neighbourhoods and high-rise buildings. The scale of the damage has placed additional strain on infrastructure already weakened by years of economic crisis and limited public services.

Rodriguez said about 17,000 people had been left homeless, according to Reuters. He also said 6,462 people had been rescued since the earthquakes. Authorities reported damage to 856 buildings, including 190 that either fully collapsed or suffered structural failure.

The figures point to a recovery effort that is moving from emergency rescue into shelter, reconstruction and long-term public-health response. The government has said Venezuela will need about 25,000 new homes for people displaced by the disaster, Reuters reported.

Authorities have earmarked about 584,000 square metres of land for reconstruction, including in Osma and Chuspa, according to Reuters. Rodriguez said the first 200 homes are expected to be distributed next week under the supervision of Acting President Delcy Rodriguez.

Search-and-rescue operations were still continuing at a small number of sites, Reuters reported, even as most of the response appeared to be shifting toward recovery. That leaves families waiting for confirmation in a disaster where the number of unidentified victims remains high.

The humanitarian needs are also widening beyond the immediate casualty count. The Associated Press reported earlier this week that displaced communities in La Guaira were facing shortages of clean water, sanitation and medical care, with people sheltering in temporary facilities, public spaces and makeshift tents.

The Associated Press also reported that health workers and humanitarian groups had seen increases in diarrheal disease, skin infections and untreated chronic illnesses in quake-hit communities. Those concerns are especially serious in crowded shelters, where limited sanitation and damaged local health infrastructure can make outbreaks harder to contain.

The United Nations has appealed for $300 million to support about 1.3 million people affected by the earthquakes, according to the Associated Press and The Guardian. The Guardian also reported that estimated damage to housing and infrastructure has reached $37 billion.

The disaster has created a large-scale housing problem alongside the immediate medical and emergency response. The reported need for 25,000 homes suggests that many survivors may remain displaced well beyond the first phase of recovery, particularly if damaged buildings are deemed unsafe or if entire neighbourhoods require rebuilding.

Venezuela's government has said it is moving ahead with housing allocation and reconstruction planning. At the same time, the number of damaged buildings, the reported deaths and the number of people left homeless indicate that the recovery will likely require sustained assistance from international agencies, local organizations and outside governments.

The crisis has also intersected with Venezuela's broader financial constraints. Reuters reported earlier this week that International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva and Acting President Delcy Rodriguez discussed the possible use of Venezuela's accessible IMF Special Drawing Rights reserve tranche for urgent earthquake needs.

According to that Reuters report, the discussion focused on the country's $350 million reserve tranche as a potential source of rapidly deployable liquidity. That funding would be separate from broader IMF loan access, which remains complicated by Venezuela's debt and international financial position.

The Guardian reported that Delcy Rodriguez has urged the United Kingdom to release 30 tons of Venezuelan gold frozen under sanctions to help finance the recovery. That request reflects the scale of the rebuilding challenge, but it also places the earthquake response inside Venezuela's existing political and sanctions disputes.

For survivors, the more immediate questions remain shelter, water, medical care and whether damaged neighbourhoods can be safely rebuilt. Humanitarian workers have warned that emergency medical treatment alone will not be enough if displaced people remain in crowded conditions without reliable sanitation or care for chronic illness.

The updated death toll also raises the importance of victim identification and family notification. Reuters reported that 315 confirmed victims were still unidentified, a figure that leaves many families without final answers even as authorities move into the next phase of recovery.

Official figures may change as search work continues, more bodies are identified and authorities assess damage in areas that were heavily affected by the June 24 earthquakes.

Fact-check date: July 11, 2026

Article type: News

Sources: Reuters; Associated Press; The Guardian; Venezuelan National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez, as reported by Reuters.