The death toll from the two powerful earthquakes that struck Venezuela on June 24 has risen to 6,438, according to the latest official reports.
As reported by the Operative Information Center-OMM, citing international media sources, the situation remains critical as recovery efforts continue across the affected regions.
Jorge Rodriguez, President of the National Assembly of Venezuela, announced via social media that the number of confirmed fatalities has increased by 137, bringing the total to 6,438. Additionally, the number of injured individuals has reached 16,740.
Rodriguez provided an update on the recovery efforts in La Guaira, the province that suffered the most significant human and material losses. The government has successfully handed over 335 newly reconstructed residential homes to their owners. Assessments have been completed for 59,109 homes; of these, 34,680 are classified as habitable, 13,733 are suitable for limited use, and 10,696 have been designated as "high risk" structures.
The seismic event, which occurred on June 24, involved two major tremors measuring 7.2 and 7.5 in magnitude, occurring just 39 seconds apart, as recorded by the United States Geological Survey (USGS). The scale of the destruction has prompted significant international attention regarding the country's infrastructure resilience. While the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) initially estimated direct material damages at $6.7 billion on June 26, the World Bank Group has since revised its projections, estimating the total direct economic impact of the disaster to be approximately $19.6 billion.
