Twin Earthquakes Devastate Venezuela, Overwhelmed Hospitals and Decaying Remains Signal Deepening Crisis

Venezuela is facing a worsening humanitarian disaster after two major earthquakes, measuring magnitude 7.2 and 7.5, struck the country last week. Amid ongoing search operations, hospitals are overwhelmed, thousands have lost their homes, and the smell of decomposing bodies has begun to blanket residential areas that were razed to the ground. The Venezuelan government has so far reported at least 1,700 fatalities and more than 5,000 injuries resulting from the quakes. However, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) estimates the actual death toll could be far higher, potentially reaching tens of thousands. Hopes of finding survivors are fading. Rescue teams from Ecuador managed to pull a 12-year-old boy alive from the rubble in La Guaira State on Monday, but experts warn the chances of finding more survivors are diminishing now that the critical ‘golden window’ for post-earthquake rescue has passed. In the capital Caracas, the pungent odour of bodies still buried under debris is now detectable at various collapsed building sites. Despite this, family members remain camped nearby, hoping their relatives are still alive. Mirella Herrera waits daily in front of her son’s collapsed apartment building; her son, daughter-in-law, and grandchild have yet to be found. ‘I feel my son is still strong. I am sure he is waiting for us to come,’ she said, weeping. The disaster has also exposed the fragility of Venezuela’s health system, long battered by economic crisis. At the Dr. José Manuel de Los Ríos Children’s Hospital in Caracas, the intensive care unit can now only treat four patients, down from its previous capacity of ten. ‘We do not have enough medical staff, medicines, or ventilators. We struggle even under normal conditions, let alone facing a disaster of this magnitude,’ said doctor Huníades Urbina-Medina. The World Health Organisation warned that Venezuela’s health system is under extraordinary strain, with hospitals operating over capacity, chaotic health services, and dwindling supplies of basic necessities like disinfectants and cleaning materials. At least three health facilities suffered severe damage, while six other hospitals are damaged or only partially operational. Medical professionals assess that the poor state of the hospitals is not solely due to the earthquake. For over a decade, Venezuela has faced a prolonged economic crisis caused by government mismanagement and economic sanctions from the United States, triggering a mass exodus of doctors and healthcare workers abroad and steadily eroding healthcare capacity. The education sector has also been hit, with the government extending school closures after hundreds of educational buildings were damaged. In Caracas alone, at least 432 schools are reported damaged, while those still usable are now functioning as emergency shelters for thousands of displaced residents. Authorities have implemented a colour-coded system to determine building safety: green for safe, yellow for moderate damage, and red for unsafe. Nevertheless, thousands of residents are still barred from returning home due to fears that buildings could collapse at any moment from ongoing aftershocks. For many Venezuelans, this natural disaster has not only destroyed buildings but also laid bare the fragility of infrastructure and public services long eroded by a protracted crisis.