Venezuela officials warn of ‘critical hours’ for earthquake rescue as death toll reaches at least 1,450

Venezuela entered what National Assembly President Jorge Rodríguez described as “critical hours” for earthquake response efforts, as the government reported an increase in casualties and said additional search and rescue teams were being deployed to affected areas.

In a televised address reported on June 28, Rodríguez said at least 1,450 people were known to have died, with 3,150 others injured. He also said 12,721 people had been displaced, underscoring the scale of damage and the challenge of reaching people affected by collapsed buildings.

Rodríguez warned that the window for locating survivors trapped under rubble is narrowing, telling viewers that time is running out. His comments reflected a standard emergency-rescue timeline, with teams prioritizing structural assessments, debris removal, and efforts to reach those believed to be alive beneath collapsed structures.

The latest updates also indicated that more search and rescue teams were arriving to support local responders. Officials have continued to coordinate around ongoing rescue operations, including the movement of personnel and specialized equipment to areas where damage from the earthquakes has been concentrated.

While the government figures provide a snapshot of the immediate toll, authorities continued to treat the casualty count as provisional, reflecting the ongoing difficulty of confirming fatalities and identifying victims in damaged neighborhoods. Rescue work, according to the reporting, remains focused on both immediate extraction and assessment of sites where trapped survivors may still be located.