Lucas Trejo's family tragedy in Venezuela's twin earthquakes: the full story and scope of the disaster

The building collapsed completely during the quakes . Trejo immediately lost contact with his family and took to social media, posting, "I don't know anything about my family. Please pray for them and share this message in case anyone saw them" .

He spent the next three days frantically searching, aided by teammates, volunteers, and family members . His brother-in-law, Ricardo Ardiles, told CNN Español that Trejo was "emotionally devastated" and that "absolutely nothing" remained of the family's home .

On the night of Saturday, June 27, rescue workers recovered the bodies of Yanina, Aarón, and Ainhoa from the rubble . Marítimo confirmed the deaths in a statement released the same day .

The twin earthquakes: magnitude and location

The two earthquakes struck off the north-central coast of Venezuela on June 24, 2026, at about 6:00 p.m. local time, within roughly 40 seconds of each other . The first measured 7.2 magnitude, followed by a second, stronger tremor of 7.5 magnitude .

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) described the event as a "severe seismic doublet sequence" . They were the most powerful earthquakes to hit Venezuela in over a century .

Casualties: evolving and staggering figures

The death toll rose rapidly over the first week as rescue teams reached affected areas. Different reporting dates produced widely varying figures:

• Initial reports (June 25): Acting President Delcy Rodríguez announced 32 dead and over 700 injured . The Associated Press later that same day reported 188 dead and more than 200 trapped .
• June 26: Health Minister Carlos Alvarado confirmed approximately 235 fatalities and around 4,300 injured .
• June 27: Moneycontrol reported the death toll had climbed to 920, with more than 50,000 people missing .
• June 28–29: Multiple outlets, including the UN and Al Jazeera, cited figures exceeding 1,400 dead . The Straits Times put the toll at 1,430 by June 27 . Al Jazeera reported more than 51,000 people remained missing .

A preliminary USGS disaster model gave a 40% probability that the death toll could fall between 10,000 and 100,000, though reported confirmed figures did not approach those projections .

Damage and destruction

The earthquakes caused widespread structural damage across northern Venezuela, with the worst effects concentrated in La Guaira state and Caracas:

• Building collapses: Dozens of buildings collapsed or suffered severe structural failures in Caracas (especially the Altamira and Los Palos Grandes neighborhoods) and throughout La Guaira . The UN's OCHA reported at least 1,423 infrastructures affected .
• Transport: Simón Bolívar International Airport in Caracas sustained runway damage and temporarily closed . Roads and bridges were damaged across the affected region .
• Utilities: Power and communications were knocked out across large parts of central and western Venezuela .
• Displacement: Hundreds of thousands of people were displaced . The UN migration agency estimated up to 6.76 million people could be affected and require emergency shelter, safe water, and sanitation .

The UN's preliminary assessment estimated direct physical damage at $6.7 billion , while other sources cited a separate estimate of $4.2 billion .

International response

The disaster triggered one of the largest international rescue mobilizations in Latin America in recent years:

• United Nations coordination: The UN deployed and coordinated 2,245 specialists and 140 search dogs from 44 international urban search-and-rescue (USAR) teams, drawn from 27 countries .
• Countries providing aid: Rescue teams, medical supplies, and humanitarian aid arrived from the U.S., European nations, Latin American countries, and other regions . President Donald Trump announced the U.S. would "stand ready, willing, and able to help" on June 24 .
• Humanitarian agencies: The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and International Medical Corps — which had worked in Venezuela since 2019 — both launched emergency response operations .
• Financial support: The Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF) created a Fund for the Recovery and Reconstruction of Venezuela to channel contributions from individuals, companies, and governments .
• State of emergency: Venezuelan authorities declared a nationwide state of emergency .

Caveat on casualty figures

The widely divergent death toll figures — from 32 to over 1,400 within five days — reflect the rapidly changing situation, damaged communications infrastructure, and the difficulty of counting victims across widespread collapse zones. The most recent credible sources (CNN, UN, Al Jazeera, and multiple wire services from June 27–29) converge on a death toll well over 1,000, with thousands injured and tens of thousands missing, making it one of the deadliest seismic events in Venezuela's modern history.