At least 32 dead and 700 injured after back-to-back earthquakes with magnitudes above 7 struck Venezuela.
A 7.2-magnitude earthquake caused havoc and panic in Venezuela on Wednesday evening, causing buildings and homes to sway in the capital of Caracas.
According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the quake's epicentre was located about 28 kilometres (17 miles) west of the community of Moron, located along the county's Caribbean coast.
The earthquake had a depth of 13 kilometres.
Just 39 seconds later, a second "main" earthquake of magnitude 7.5 hit the same area, with the depth of 10 kilometres.
Many Venezuelans were at home when the earthquake hit, as they were celebrating a public holiday commemorating an 1821 military victory which secured Venezuela's independence from Spain.
More than 20 aftershocks also hit Venezuela since the first major earthquake struck at about 6 p.m. on Wednesday.
Venezuela declares a state of emergency
Venezuela's interim leader, Delcy Rodríguez, has declared a state of emergency after the country was struck by two powerful earthquakes that collapsed buildings and caused extensive damage in and around the capital.
"We ask the population to remain calm and united," Rodríguez said in a televised broadcast on Wednesday night, urging citizens to evacuate damaged structures.
The airport had been closed after suffering "severe damage" and announced that the metro and train systems had been halted.
"We send our immediate condolences to those who have lost relatives," the acting president added.
US offers immediate support to Venezuela amid earthquakes
US President Donald Trump in a Truth Social post said that the reports coming out of Venezuela are "not good" and the earthquakes have "left a devastating number of deaths".
Offering help, the president added, "We will be there for our new and great friends."
Jeremy Lewin, the US under secretary of state for foreign assistance, said on X, "Working with our partners in the interim Venezuelan government, the U.S. will be sending search and rescue teams, medical and humanitarian supplies and other resources in the crucial first days after this tragic natural disaster."
María Corina Machado reacts to devastating Venezuela earthquakes
The exiled opposition leader and Nobel laureate, María Corina Machado, wrote on X, "My heart, my infinite embrace, and my prayers are with every Venezuelan home in these hours of anguish."
She added, "May strength, serenity and solidarity prevail among us in the face of this difficult moment."
Venezuela earthquakes felt in other regions
The quake was felt as far away as the Colombian capital of Bogota, where alarms sounded and some residents evacuated buildings as a precaution.
Freddy Tovar, coordinator of Colombia's National Seismological Network, said they had received more than 200 reports of tremors nationwide.
"The conditions of this seismic event mean that some aftershocks may occur, which could also be widely felt across Colombian territory," he said in a video posted on X.
The US Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued a tsunami alert for the Virgin Islands. Authorities in the Dominican Republic also issued one for the island. Another alert for Puerto Rico was quickly lifted.
Shortly after Venezuela's twin quakes on Wednesday, a 6.9 magnitude tremor hit northern Japan, the country's weather agency said, with no casualties or material damage reported.
Venezuela's earthquakes history
The strongest tremors in earthquake-prone Venezuela's recent history occurred in the Northeast in 1997, killing 73 people, and in Caracas in 1967, when 236 people died.
