Venezuela: Caracas residents recount terror as quakes devastate Venezuela.

Shotlist Caracas, Venezuela - June 25, 2026 (CGTN - No access Chinese mainland) 1. Various of destroyed buildings, rubble 2. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Beatriz Chelaner, local resident (partially overlaid with shot 3): "It all happened so fast. It took us all by surprise. It was very frightening. There were a lot of people in this building, including many elderly people and many children. It's the first time we've experienced an earthquake of this magnitude. Thank God we were able to get downstairs. We live on the first floor, so we could get down quickly. But obviously we were worried about our neighbors upstairs, so we stayed here out on the street. The firefighters did a quick assessment while they were evacuating the elderly residents, and they told us we couldn't stay in the building until a more thorough inspection was conducted to determine if it was actually safe to live in." ++SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++ 3. Rubble ++SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE++ 4. Various of rescuers 5. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Claudio Yagnoti, local resident: "I came here to lend a hand as a Venezuelan. It's a call to action after everything that has happened since yesterday. It's been a truly devastating catastrophe, a very severe one. And we came to pitch in as that's what every good Venezuelan should do. Pickaxe and shovel, let's break some rocks." 6. People talking to rescuers Storyline Caracas residents on Thursday described scenes of panic and terror after twin earthquakes devastated Venezuela, killing at least 235 people and trapping hundreds under rubble. The quakes struck Wednesday less than a minute apart, prompting frantic rescues from collapsed buildings and drawing international support for the disaster‑hit South American country. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said the tremors measured magnitude 7.2 and 7.5, at depths of 20.3 km and 10 km, injuring at least 4,300 people and leaving 157 missing. "It all happened so fast. It took us all by surprise. It was very frightening. There were a lot of people in this building, including many elderly people and many children. It's the first time we've experienced an earthquake of this magnitude. Thank God we were able to get downstairs. We live on the first floor, so we could get down quickly. But obviously we were worried about our neighbors upstairs, so we stayed here out on the street. The firefighters did a quick assessment while they were evacuating the elderly residents, and they told us we couldn't stay in the building until a more thorough inspection was conducted to determine if it was actually safe to live in," said Beatriz Chelaner, a local resident. In addition to organized relief, members of the public are stepping in to support rescue operations. "I came here to lend a hand as a Venezuelan. It's a call to action after everything that has happened since yesterday. It's been a truly devastating catastrophe, a very severe one. And we came to pitch in as that's what every good Venezuelan should do. Pickaxe and shovel, let's break some rocks," said Claudio Yagnoti, a local. As of noon local time Thursday, the two quakes had triggered 138 aftershocks, Venezuelan National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez said in a televised address. The government has declared several areas, including La Guaira state, disaster zones amid continuing aftershocks. The USGS issued a red alert after the quakes, warning of major casualties, extensive damage and severe economic losses. Early modeling from the USGS estimates that the final death toll could reach between 10,000 and 100,000, while economic losses could amount to between 2 percent and 10 percent of Venezuela's gross domestic product.