In case you missed it, two major earthquakes hit Venezuela on Wednesday evening — the first was a 7.2, and a 7.5 followed shortly after. They left a country that has already been through so much over the last almost three decades in ruins in certain areas. After years of neglect by Hugo Chávez and Nicolás Maduro, the infrastructure was already one natural disaster away from crumbling, and we basically watched that happen in real time on Wednesday.
#URGENTE 10:25am Vista aérea de los daños en la Guaira (Zona Cero), es muy grave la situacion, mas de 40 edificios colapsados y no se observan equipos de rescate. pic.twitter.com/afvOBT66TV
— Andrews Abreu (@AndrewsAbreu) June 25, 2026
Lo de La Guaira es devastador.
— Orlando Avendaño (@OrlvndoA) June 25, 2026
Doloroso.
Esto es en Playa Grande. pic.twitter.com/kdjRiqGOHx
As I write this on Thursday afternoon, the death toll stands at 164 with nearly 1,000 injured. Unfortunately, 27,000 people remain missing, and rescue crews haven't even begun to scratch the surface of digging through the many, many buildings that collapsed. The country does not come close to having the ambulances, hospitals, or rescue crews to deal with something like this, thanks to Chavismo. Even if the last 27 years had been normal, it wouldn't have had what it needed to respond to a disaster of this magnitude.
Related: Back-to-Back Major Earthquakes in Venezuela: Severe Damage, Many Casualties Likely
I have to admit that after I broke the news last night, I was shaken. Over the past year, as I've covered the fall of Maduro and the months leading up to it, I've become incredibly close to that country and its people in many ways — making friends, developing relationships with journalists and other sources, etc. I even have readers from there or who have family and friends there who contact me from time to time. Just seeing and hearing their anger over how this is what the regime left them with, sadness that their country is going through what will be one of its most painful moments in history, and fear for their own loved ones' safety left me quite emotional.
But something good is happening.
It started with El Salvador's Nayib Bukele. He was the first one I saw to speak up. In the direct aftermath, he posted the following on social media:
At this moment, we have offered assistance to the Government of Venezuela through our Foreign Ministry.
300 rescuers and paramedics, along with 50 tons of equipment, medicines, and essential supplies, are ready to depart for Caracas.
Then Javier Milei and Argentina stepped up. "Beyond any differences that may exist between our governments, President Javier G. Milei extends his hand in solidarity to the Venezuelan people in the face of this natural disaster, which demands a response from the entire international community," his office said in a statement.
Then it was President Luis Abinader of the Dominican Republic, President José Antonio Kast of Chile, President José Raúl Mulino of Panama, President Laura Fernández of Costa Rica, President Daniel Noboa of Ecuador, and so on.
These are all members of the Shield of the Americas — the ground of right-minded countries in North and South America that Donald Trump and Marco Rubio put together to counter the cartels and adversaries taking over our hemisphere, but also to cooperate on other issues. When I first learned of the coalition, I joked that they were like the Avengers, that when there is something major playing out in the Western Hemisphere, they'd assemble, led by the United States, to handle it. That's exactly what it feels like is happening. It's wonderful to see.
Of course, other countries are offering aid, as well, like Colombia (Gustavo Petro's still in there until August, but Colombia will join the Shield when he leaves), Mexico, Spain, Brazil, Qatar, and Germany, but the biggest response has come from the more conservative leaders in our hemisphere.
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) June 25, 2026
This would not have happened if Maduro were still in charge. He would have turned away or pocketed donations and limited on-the-ground help from many of our countries. We've seen it happen in the past. Several of these countries wouldn't have even bothered. His regime would blame the damage on the sanctions from the "imperialists." Most people would go without help, and the domestic situation would become so much worse than it already was.
And, of course, we have our president and secretary of state to thank. I saw many of you say last night that there was no point in sending help because the regime, via Delcy Rodríguez, is in charge, and it won't get to where it needs to go, but that's not quite accurate. The United States is coordinating nearly everything happening in Venezuela — Delcy is just the pragmatic puppet, no matter how many nice things they say about her — and that extends to this situation. I can't tell you how many times Delcy has thanked Trump in the last 20 hours or so — a big change for the woman, who, just a year ago, was fully Team Death to America.
Thanking Trump was one of the first things she did when she spoke publicly on Wednesday night for the first time. The language she is using is almost identical to that of the Trump administration.
These presidents, like Kast, Bukele, and Milei, who are making these grand offers, aren't doing so blindly. They're coordinating with the Trump administration and the U.S. military — Rubio confirmed that today. You can also read it in the language they use. Legitimate charities will do the same.
Rubio said today that he is in contact with Delcy and Pete Hegseth because our military will be heavily involved in these recovery efforts. Search and rescue is the number one mission right now, he says, but he added that the airport was damaged, and getting supplies and personnel in and out can't necessarily be done by civilians.
While he didn't mention this directly, there is also fear of unrest. I've actually heard that directly from someone involved in the mission. Venezuela is not unique — there is always that fear after a major disaster or change — and Rubio has mentioned several times in the past that after capturing Maduro, there was also fear of some type of civil war or unrest. It didn't happen. But the people are not quite as frightened as they were six months ago, and many are just downright angry. There were actually some protests led by college students on Wednesday shortly before the earthquakes, demanding that elections take place sooner rather than later.
We're also helping with aerial imaging to assess the damage, particularly in rural and coastal areas. We've already got rescue crews on the ground there.
Someone asked me about our own personnel already in Venezuela, and Rubio says we have full accountability that everyone is safe, via the U.S. Embassy in Caracas.
Here are his full remarks on the situation:
— SarahDownSouth (@SarahDownSouth) June 25, 2026
So, hopefully, that answers some of the questions I know a lot of you have had. As Rubio said, the next 48-72 hours will be critical, and we'll learn much more about the reality of what has happened. There's never a good time for a major natural disaster, but the fact that it happened without Maduro involved and with Trump and Rubio running the show will give the Venezuelan people a chance to pull through. They're no longer alone.
I'll keep you updated.
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