‘We hugged each other and ran’: Venezuelans recount earthquake horror

Scenes of panic, collapsing buildings and desperate rescues are the scenes described by Venezuelans caught in magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 earthquakes that struck the country within seconds of each other.

Caracas was among the hardest-hit areas on Wednesday as rescue teams searched through the rubble of collapsed buildings with thousands of people feared dead.

Authorities have declared a state of emergency, suspending classes, closing the country’s main airport and urging healthcare workers to report to hospitals.

Jesus Alejandro Pina, a 38-year-old engineer in Caracas, said he was on the top floor of a seven-storey building when the earthquakes struck.

“It was very, very strong,” he told Al Jazeera. “I don’t know exactly how long it lasted, but it felt like about a minute.”

“Glasses were breaking, pictures were falling, the television too. Everything was falling. The lamps, anything made of glass, even the columns and beams were making noise.”

As an engineer, Pina understood what was happening to the building as it shook.

“The movement in the columns and beams helps absorb energy,” he said. “But if it lasts too long, it can reach a breaking point. That’s when collapses happen.”

When the shaking stopped, thousands of frightened residents rushed onto the streets and were met with scenes of horror and obliteration.

“Everyone was in the streets, in the squares, outside their homes. “People looked alert, nervous. There were many injured. Firefighters and paramedics were pulling people from under the rubble,” Pina said.

“It’s already midnight, and everyone is still awake, outside their homes, watching the news. They’re on alert because they say there are more aftershocks.”

Moment of horror

For 25-year-old Luis Alejandro Ruiz Garcia, from Caracas’s El Paraiso neighbourhood, the earthquakes unfolded in a matter of seconds.

A Google earthquake alert appeared on Ruiz Garcia’s phone moments before his apartment began shaking violently.

“My mother and my sister, who were with me, got up from their beds in fear,” he said. “We hugged each other and, as soon as we could, managed to go downstairs and get out of my building as quickly as possible.”

Outside, he said, orange dust filled the air after a residential building collapsed three blocks from his apartment.

“We waited about 10 minutes and then went back up to collect documents and some clothes before leaving again.”

As he made his way to check on his grandmother, Ruiz Garcia found streets packed with residents searching for relatives and trying to help neighbours escape damaged buildings.

“The building across the street was a wreck. It looked like one of those images from a country at war. You could hear people screaming for help so they could get out,” he said.

Elderly residents who lived alone after their sons and daughters emigrated from Venezuela due to the country’s economic collapse were trapped alone under the rubble.

As rescuers worked through the night, the full scale of the disaster remained unclear.

At least 32 people were confirmed dead, according to Venezuelan authorities, but officials warned the toll was likely to rise as search and rescue teams continue their operations.

The United States Geological Survey said there is a 44 percent chance of more than 10,000 dead and 33 percent chance of the death toll surpassing 100,000.

Communications remained disrupted in several regions, leaving many families unable to contact relatives and providing another challenge for authorities trying to assess the full scale of the disaster.