Rescue teams operate heavy machinery at the site of a collapsed building in Caracas on June 25, 2026, following earthquakes. (Photo by Juan Barreto/ AFP)
La Guaira, Venezuela: Rescuers used heavy machinery and their bare hands on Friday in a race to save survivors of deadly twin earthquakes in Venezuela that killed at least 235 people, hurt thousands and flattened scores of buildings.
International rescuers and aid have begun arriving to help a nation struggling to respond two days after its strongest quake in well over a century struck west of Caracas.
Rubble from collapsed buildings had trapped more than 200 people under debris, National Assembly chief Jorge Rodriguez said Thursday.
At the site of one of those flattened buildings, workers used sledgehammers to break the debris and called for "absolute silence" in order to hear survivors, AFP footage showed.
Health Minister Carlos Alvarado reported the death toll had risen to at least 235, with around 4,300 people injured.
Rescue efforts have moved slowly, with bodies still visible under debris hours after the quakes, while time ran out for some of those who were trapped and injured.
But help has begun to arrive, with a senior American military official landing in Venezuela's capital Caracas to oversee US relief efforts.
Nations around the world have pledged send rescuers, money and aid, with the United States saying it was deploying two warships, transport planes and helicopters and mobilizing $150 million in aid.
In the worst-hit state of La Guaira, north of Caracas, Amparo del Giudice dug with her bare hands at a huge mound of concrete in search of her son.
"It is a lot of rock, and with bare hands it is impossible," she said, exasperated and flailing at the rubble.
Elsewhere, a young girl died after crying out for help for hours as onlookers listened helplessly, local residents told AFP.
"We need people... military personnel, to come and help so we can get her out," said resident Dani Rizo, 48.
The dead include foreigners, with Two Spaniards, one Portuguese national, two Brazilians, one Italian-Venezuelan, and two Chinese nationals are among those killed.
The Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs also reported on Friday that 80 Spaniards remain unaccounted for.
