Teams scramble to locate survivors four days after Venezuela earthquakes

Teams scramble to locate survivors four days after Venezuela Earthquakes 0 seconds of 1 minute, 14 secondsVolume 0% Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts Keyboard ShortcutsEnabledDisabled Shortcuts Open/Close/ or ? Play/PauseSPACE Increase Volume↑ Decrease Volume↓ Seek Forward→ Seek Backward← Captions On/Offc Fullscreen/Exit Fullscreenf Mute/Unmutem Decrease Caption Size- Increase Caption Size+ or = Seek %0-9 Next Up Rubio comments on US assistance for Venezuela after powerful quakes, meetings with Gulf countries 01:00 00:00 01:14 01:14 More Videos 01:00 Rubio comments on US assistance for Venezuela after powerful quakes, meetings with Gulf countries 00:50 Sharp drops in Big Tech companies pull the Nasdaq lower 00:55 Sharp drops in tech companies pull stocks lower on Wall Street 01:26 Meet members of Albania's 'Flamingo Revolution' trying to torpedo Kushner-linked development 01:01 AP top stories June 25 00:52 Four capybaras born in Jerusalem’s Biblical Zoo named after the Beatles 01:10 Quebec premier weighs in on deadly Montreal shooting 01:56 Election worker says ICE officers confronted her at polling place over social media post Close 1 of 11 | United States search and rescue team members pulled a father and his son from the rubble on Sunday, four days after Venezuela powerful quakes. (AP video by Juan Arraez.) More Videos 0 seconds of 1 minute, 12 secondsVolume 90% Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts Keyboard ShortcutsEnabledDisabled Shortcuts Open/Close/ or ? Play/PauseSPACE Increase Volume↑ Decrease Volume↓ Seek Forward→ Seek Backward← Captions On/Offc Fullscreen/Exit Fullscreenf Mute/Unmutem Decrease Caption Size- Increase Caption Size+ or = Seek %0-9 Next Up Priced out of World Cup games, Mexican fans take celebrations into their own hands 00:41 00:00 01:12 01:12 More Videos Close 2 of 11 | Omar Guariato was celebrating his granddaughter’s 5th birthday at home when the Earthquakes began. As he sat in a camp for displaced people in the hard-hit La Guaira, he recalled the moment the house next door collapsed. More Videos 0 seconds of 49 secondsVolume 90% Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts Keyboard ShortcutsEnabledDisabled Shortcuts Open/Close/ or ? 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(AP Video shot by Andry Rincón) More Videos 0 seconds of 1 minute, 39 secondsVolume 90% Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts Keyboard ShortcutsEnabledDisabled Shortcuts Open/Close/ or ? Play/PauseSPACE Increase Volume↑ Decrease Volume↓ Seek Forward→ Seek Backward← Captions On/Offc Fullscreen/Exit Fullscreenf Mute/Unmutem Decrease Caption Size- Increase Caption Size+ or = Seek %0-9 Next Up Priced out of World Cup games, Mexican fans take celebrations into their own hands 00:41 00:00 01:39 01:39 More Videos Close 4 of 11 | Footage showed panic in the streets of Caracas as back-to-back Earthquakes struck the Venezuelan capital. A rare double earthquake ravaged Venezuela on Wednesday, killing at least 920 and injuring another 3,360, authorities said. Many more are feared dead. More Videos 0 seconds of 54 secondsVolume 90% Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts Keyboard ShortcutsEnabledDisabled Shortcuts Open/Close/ or ? Play/PauseSPACE Increase Volume↑ Decrease Volume↓ Seek Forward→ Seek Backward← Captions On/Offc Fullscreen/Exit Fullscreenf Mute/Unmutem Decrease Caption Size- Increase Caption Size+ or = Seek %0-9 Next Up Rubio comments on US assistance for Venezuela after powerful quakes, meetings with Gulf countries 01:00 00:00 00:54 00:54 More Videos Close 5 of 11 | Pope reiterates support for quake-hit Venezuela, prays for victims 6 of 11 | Rescue workers carry a man rescued from the rubble of a building that collapsed in the Earthquakes that struck La Guaira, Venezuela, Sunday, June 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix) 7 of 11 | Relief workers carry a man rescued from a building that collapsed in the Earthquakes that struck La Guaira, Venezuela, Sunday, June 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix) 8 of 11 | U.S. firefighters from the Fairfax County search and rescue team pull a boy from the rubble after rescuing him and his father from a building that collapsed in the Earthquakes in La Guaira, Venezuela, Sunday, June 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix) 9 of 11 | Damaged buildings are seen three days after Earthquakes struck in La Guaira, Venezuela, Saturday, June 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix) 10 of 11 | EDS NOTE: GRAPHIC CONTENT - Bodies remain trapped under the rubble of a collapsed building three days after an earthquake struck La Guaira, Venezuela, Saturday, June 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix) 11 of 11 | A U.S. aircraft flies over an area struck by Earthquakes in La Guaira, Venezuela, Sunday, June 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Pedro Mattey) By REGINA GARCIA CANO, JUAN PABLO ARRAEZ and MEGAN JANETSKY Updated 8:52 PM MESZ, June 28, 2026 Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit La Guaira, Venezuela (AP) — Local and international rescue teams raced against the clock to pull survivors from the rubble in Venezuela on Sunday, four days after two powerful Earthquakes shook the northern state of La Guaira. The government reported 1,450 dead from the quakes Sunday afternoon as it faced growing criticism from Venezuelans that its response was inadequate and was overshadowed by civilian-led efforts to rescue people buried under collapsed buildings. Thousands have been reported missing, according to multiple databases being used by families searching for loved ones. Even as the likelihood of finding people alive diminished with each passing hour, rescuers continued to free survivors from mountains of debris, offering anguished families reason to keep hopes alive. Aid agencies consider the first 48 to 72 hours after a natural disaster as crucial for retrieving people alive, though that can be extended if they have access to food and water. ✕ Get more from the world's most trusted newsroom. Independent. Nonpartisan. Essential. Create a free account Sign in to existing account How we use your information Help with registration Continue without registering Rescue workers from the U.S. and France pulled a man and his son from the ruins Sunday morning and carried them carefully on a black tarp into an ambulance. Masses of people gathered to watch the rescue as the survivors — covered in dust — were hydrated through an IV. The military is searching for a US Marine missing off the coast of California 1 MIN READ In blow to DC Studios, ‘Supergirl’ is no match for ‘Toy Story 5' at box office 4 MIN READ Khadijah Farrakhan, ‘first lady of Nation of Islam’ as wife of famous pastor, dies at 90 1 MIN READ More than 2,200 rescue workers from across the world had arrived by Saturday, the U.N. said, and more were still arriving. “It’s been incredibly hard work, but we’re going strong,” said Jason Mercano, a civilian who was able to communicate with family buried under the rubble via social media. Rodríguez said on state television Saturday that more than 14,000 members of the military and police are patrolling the La Guaira state, where access is now blocked and special permits are required to enter. Many in disaster zones said they had seen little of their government. But rescue efforts in La Guaira appeared more organized on Sunday than in the previous days. The disaster poses a huge challenge for Rodríguez, the former vice president who took office in January after the U.S. capture and removal of then-President Nicolás Maduro. Venezuela has been facing economic disarray for more than a decade, and many people reject the legitimacy of the political movement Rodríguez represents. Venezuela’s government said Sunday more than 770 buildings had totally or partially collapsed from the earthquake, twice as many as were reported destroyed or damaged on Friday. Some people climbed the remnants of buildings and cried out names, hoping for any proof of life. Dust coated coastal communities. In punishing heat, more people wore masks as the stench of decomposition spread. In other parts of La Guaira, teams loaded stacks of bodies – some in white bags, other naked – onto white trucks from the ground of a dirt hospital parking lot, where they were being identified. Without hard hats or other gear, rescuers and civilians instead wore motorcycle helmets as they searched piles of debris. Some, frustrated by the government’s response, blocked an excavator from leaving the site of a collapse and pulled the operator from its cabin shortly after state workers took selfies in front of flattened buildings and left without helping. The ruling party’s officials often take selfies to show participation in government-related events. The International Organization for Migration said over 6 million people could be affected, some 2 million in the capital, Caracas, alone. Experts said the destruction was amplified by the quick succession of shallow quakes. For days, smaller aftershocks occasionally shook the capital, Caracas and areas hit by the quakes, including one measuring 4.8 on Saturday. Search teams and foreign aid continued to arrive from Mexico, the U.S., Brazil, El Salvador, France and elsewhere. For many, the images of international aid teams arriving and climbing through the rubble alongside them offered a glimmer of hope. Yonahí Regalado has been calling out the names of her sister and 1-year-old nephew and godson since 1 a.m. the day after the Earthquakes until aid workers began to arrive. “It doesn’t matter who it is, whoever, whether it’s family or somebody else. If there is anyone alive, let’s get them out,” she said, as helicopters circled overhead. Small moments of humanity mixed with grief and terror. One video showed a Venezuelan rescuer comforting an elderly woman trapped beneath the rubble, scared that the structure would cave in if she moved. “The roof won’t cave in. If it falls, I’ll be here with you,” he said. Simón Bolívar International Airport, which serves Caracas, was badly damaged. One runway was operational as U.S. teams worked to repair the crucial throughway, Jeremy Lewin, a senior State Department official in charge of foreign assistance, told reporters. Janetsky reported from Mexico City. Associated Press journalists Matías Delacroix in La Guaira, Venezuela, Clara Preve in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Ali Swenson in Washington, contributed to this report. JUAN PABLO ARRAEZ Arraez is a Venezuelan video journalist working for The Associated Press since 2018. twitter mailto MEGAN JANETSKY Megan Janetsky covers migration, conflict, human rights and politics in Mexico and Central America for The AP based in Mexico City. Previously, she covered Cuba and the Caribbean for The AP and worked as freelance journalist in Colombia, reporting across South America. twitter instagram facebook mailto