China ready to assist Venezuela earthquake victims

Beijing (ANTARA) - The Chinese government has stated it is ready to assist victims of the earthquakes in Venezuela caused by tremors of magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 that struck the country. “We are ready to see what we can do to help according to Venezuela’s needs,” said Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Guo Jiakun at a press conference in Beijing on Thursday (25/6). Venezuela was rocked by a major earthquake of magnitude 7.2 on Wednesday (24/6) afternoon local time near San Felipe, the capital of Yaracuy State. Forty seconds later, a magnitude 7.5 earthquake shook the southeastern region of Yumare. The events triggered a tsunami warning for Venezuela’s coastal areas as well as the islands of Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao, which are Dutch territories. “We extend our sympathy to the Venezuelan government and the affected people. We believe that under the leadership of the Venezuelan government, its people will recover and rebuild soon,” added Guo Jiakun. Guo Jiakun also mentioned that so far there have been no reports of Chinese nationals becoming victims of the earthquake. “We continue to communicate with our embassy in Caracas. To date, there have been no reports of Chinese nationals injured or killed,” said Guo Jiakun. The tremors were felt very strongly in Caracas, the capital of Venezuela, causing people to run out of high-rise buildings to save themselves. As of Thursday (25/6), the death toll from the two devastating earthquakes that hit Venezuela rose to 164 people, while 971 others were injured. Acting President Delcy Rodriguez said the number of victims is likely to continue rising as rescue teams are still focused on evacuating residents trapped in collapsed buildings and houses. She also stated that a national state of emergency has been declared. Venezuela’s main airport, Maiquetia, was forced to close completely after sustaining severe damage. According to Delcy Rodriguez, a number of countries such as the United States, Panama, Qatar, Cuba, Nicaragua, Turkey, Jordan, Colombia, Barbados, the United Kingdom, Brazil, and Mexico have expressed their readiness to assist Venezuela. The USGS estimates there is a 42 per cent chance that the death toll could reach between 10,000 and 100,000 people. La Guaira, located near Caracas, is expected to be the most affected state by the earthquake. The USGS described the main earthquake as the largest ever recorded to hit Venezuela and the strongest in more than 125 years.