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Aftershocks, missing, displacement
One month after twin earthquakes struck northern Venezuela on 24 June, more than 21,000 people remained displaced and living in temporary shelters as thousands of families continued searching for missing relatives beneath collapsed buildings in La Guaira and neighboring states.
“24 de julio 2026 - 09:38 Se cumple un mes del doble terremoto de Venezuela y allí la situación sigue siendo crítica”
Latin Times said more than 5,200 people had died and nearly 17,000 had been injured, while the World Bank estimated $19.6 billion in direct physical damage.
The BBC reported that government officials say the death toll has surpassed 5,300, while estimates of the number still missing could be as high as 50,000.
In La Guaira, relatives kept visiting collapsed apartment buildings, temporary morgues and emergency shelters because authorities had never released a definitive nationwide figure for the missing, leaving thousands of families without closure.
Elena Vicario of the Norwegian Refugee Council warned that the real test is whether support continues after the headlines fade, saying, "The real test now is whether that support continues after the headlines start to fade."
Families keep searching
Javier Navarro said he lost nine relatives in one of the massive Misión Vivienda towers in Caraballeda that came crashing down after the June 24 earthquakes, and he described waiting for his mother’s ashes while four more relatives remained buried beneath the rubble.
El País reported that the death toll from the 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude earthquakes has surpassed 5,300 according to the latest government figures, while it said authorities have stopped speaking about the missing and that no one knows how many people are unaccounted for.
In the same account, Navarro said, "People aren’t going to leave their dead there," as he pleaded with heavy machinery operators to stop pushing ahead with demolition of collapsed buildings.
The BBC said families were still searching for remains amid the rubble of flattened apartment buildings that line the coast of La Guaira, the region worst-hit by the twin earthquakes on 24 June.
Will Grant visited a makeshift hospital formed on the site of a country club in Caraballeda, where survivors of the earthquakes were being cared for as families continued their search a month later.
Recovery, health risks, funding
As search-and-rescue operations officially ended weeks ago, Latin Times said the search for victims has not, and it warned that humanitarian needs are evolving into a long-term recovery crisis that could take years to overcome.
“Families in Venezuela are still searching for the remains of their loved ones, lost amid the rubble of flattened apartment buildings that line the coast of La Guaira, the region worst-hit by twin earthquakes on 24 June”
Pan American Health Organization Director Dr. Jarbas Barbosa warned that in the coming weeks the greatest health risks may stem from disruptions to health services, overcrowded conditions, deficiencies in water and sanitation and reduced access to vaccination and routine healthcare.
The Red Cross said reconstruction will take years, with Scott Craig telling reporters, "The recovery process will take years, not weeks," while noting that health care, mental health support, and access to clean drinking water are immediate priorities.
Euronews reported that the government’s balance rose to 5,398 deaths and that the number of injured remained at 16,740, while it said 17,907 people had lost their housing.
The World Bank estimated the earthquakes caused $19.6 billion in direct physical damage and said 47 percent of the damage occurred to residential buildings, underscoring the scale of the challenge facing recovery efforts.
