The death toll from the catastrophic earthquake that struck Venezuela’s capital has surged past 235, with hundreds more missing, sources on the ground confirm. The 7.3 magnitude tremor ripped through Caracas at dawn, toppling tower blocks, rupturing gas lines, and burying entire neighbourhoods under rubble. British rescue teams, including specialist urban search and rescue units from the UK’s International Search and Rescue (ISAR), are mobilising for deployment to Caracas, government officials said late tonight.
“We are looking at a humanitarian catastrophe,” a senior Venezuelan civil defence official told me, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to brief the press. “The numbers will rise. They always do in these situations.” The official’s voice cracked over a patchy satellite line. I could hear sirens and screams in the background.
Uncovered documents obtained by this newsroom show that the UK’s Foreign Office had flagged Venezuela’s lax building codes in a confidential memo eight months ago, warning that a major quake could result in “mass casualties due to poor construction standards.” The memo, stamped ‘SENSITIVE’, was circulated to Whitehall desks but no action was taken. Now those warnings have become a grim reality.
The quake struck at 4:47 am local time, sending thousands fleeing into the streets. Many were still in their night clothes. The historic centre, a dense warren of colonial-era buildings and unregulated high-rises, was ground zero. A 20-storey apartment block in the uptown neighbourhood of Los Palos Grandes pancaked into itself, trapping an estimated 100 people. Rescue workers are digging through the debris with their bare hands. Heavy equipment has yet to arrive.
“There is no power. No water. The hospitals are overwhelmed,” a nurse at the University Hospital of Caracas told me, her voice trembling. “We are performing amputations with hacksaws.” She asked not to be named for fear of reprisals. The Venezuelan government has declared a state of emergency and requested international assistance. The US, Russia and China have also pledged aid. But the British response is notable for its speed: a C-17 transport aircraft loaded with medical supplies, rescue dogs, and heavy lifting gear is expected to depart RAF Brize Norton within hours.
The disaster comes amid Venezuela’s worst economic crisis in decades, with hyperinflation, food shortages, and a collapsing healthcare system. The regime of President Nicolás Maduro has been widely accused of corruption and mismanagement, but tonight even his most vocal critics are united in grief. “Politics stops at the rubble,” said a local priest who was helping to dig bodies out of a collapsed church. “We are all Venezuelans now.”
But the papers I have seen tell a different story: billions of dollars in oil revenues that were supposed to shore up infrastructure were siphoned off into offshore accounts. The money trail leads to Miami, Panama, and London. The same names keep appearing: shell companies, ministers, and a clutch of well-connected contractors.
As the sun sets over Caracas, the stench of death hangs in the air. The death toll will climb. It always does. And when the bodies are counted, the real questions will begin. Who knew? Who profited? And why did no one act?
I’ll be following the money. As always.
