One of Latin America’s worst earthquake disasters has left more than 16,000 homeless and collapsed 190 buildings, mostly in the coastal La Guaira area north of the capital Caracas.

A man inspects a collapsed apartment building following an earthquake in Catia La Mar, La Guaira state, some 30km north-west of Caracas, on June 25, 2026. Photo by FEDERICO PARRA / AFP

The death toll from Venezuela’s devastating twin earthquakes has risen to 2,954, according to official figures released on Saturday.

Fatalities increased by more than 300 from Friday, with over 16,000 injured following the June 24 disaster that toppled scores of buildings and left thousands still missing.

One of Latin America’s worst earthquake disasters has left more than 16,000 homeless and collapsed 190 buildings, mostly in the coastal La Guaira area north of the capital Caracas.

Ten days after the 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude double shocks, rescue teams are starting to wrap up searches for survivors while families try to recover the bodies of loved ones from the rubble.

The critical window for rescues in disasters like earthquakes usually ends after 72 hours, though a few people have miraculously been found alive this week.

Meanwhile, with little hope of finding loved ones alive, frustrated families of those affected by Venezuela’s double earthquakes clamoured for help to recover their loved ones’ bodies Friday as uncertainty grew over the death toll from the tragedy.

Authorities on Friday reported a total of 2,645 deaths and more than 12,000 wounded from the 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude earthquakes that struck the country last week, with most fatalities in the coastal town of La Guaira, where scores of residential complexes were flattened.

Officials have avoided estimating the number of missing, though the UN has put that figure at as many as 50,000.

Many survivors who were left homeless, meanwhile, are sleeping in the streets or in makeshift shelters set up in parks and public spaces.

Nine days after one of Latin America’s worst earthquake disasters, rescue teams were beginning to wind down search operations for survivors, although many relatives still clung desperately to any sound from the rubble as a sign of life.

In front of the Tahiti building in the Caraballeda sector of La Guaira, one rescuer reported hearing shouts from an adult in the early morning hours on Friday.

Reports also emerged that a 9-year-old boy had been found alive, but foreign rescuers told AFP there was no trace of any survivors.

Outside Tahiti, frustrations boiled over as families trying to recover bodies shouted at others wanting to clear the way for a potential rescue.

“Until I recover the bodies, I won’t be at peace,” said Jose Francisco Liendo, who was trying to dig out the remains of his father and sister.

“Don’t let the machines come and take them away like garbage.”

Stabilizing presence

dead? Aren’t they human beings too?” said Dalimer Diaz, 43.

“Nobody wants to remove the dead; we have to retrieve the bodies ourselves. We need machinery to help us.”

Soldiers later arrived at the Tahiti building where residents had been arguing. A Spanish brigade also came with a crane to begin removing rubble.

Aloa Gonzalez was waiting for her sister’s body, buried under blocks and concrete.

“I just came from burying my father and mother, and I came here to rescue my sister,” she said.

“How do I feel? Dead inside,” she said. “I can’t believe it. I don’t want to stop because I don’t want to face the reality of what’s happening.”