Earthquake in Venezuela

June 24, 2026.

A very quick and sudden post, but today has been really hectic. A few hours ago, around 6 p.m., there was an earthquake in Venezuela. There are still no official reports from the agency responsible for monitoring these types of events in the country, but other sources say it measured between 7.1 and 7.5 on the Richter scale.

I felt it. I was in bed when I suddenly started to feel a tremor; I quickly felt dizzy and thought I was just feeling sick. However, I went out to the living room and saw objects moving, so my mom and I went out to the front of the house. We stayed there for about a minute and then went back inside.

It’s worth noting that the epicenter is quite far from where I live. The epicenter is located along the fault in the central region of the country, and I live in the eastern region.

Venezuela is a country with active faults, so there are constant earthquakes, though they are of low magnitude. The faults are located in the west, in the Andes region and the central region, and there is one in the eastern region where I live. Years ago, in 2018, there was an earthquake along this eastern fault, and it was felt very strongly—it had a magnitude of approximately 7.3. However, to date, I haven’t felt an earthquake of that magnitude.

Basically, since I live somewhat far from that area, the tremor felt milder; generally speaking, it felt like waves, and I had a little trouble walking because the movement made me dizzy quickly.

And even though it wasn’t felt very strongly where I live, the central region has been hit the hardest. It’s truly tragic what’s happening in cities like Caracas, the capital, Maracay, Valencia (very close to the epicenter), Los Teques, Guarenas, and in coastal cities like La Guaira.

Sadly, buildings have collapsed, many people have died, and many are still missing. This is a time of national shock. Coincidentally, today is also a national holiday commemorating the Battle of Carabobo—an important battle in the history of Venezuela’s independence—and the epicenter was also in Carabobo.

Unfortunately, there has also been a lot of misinformation. Social media spreads faster than traditional media like television or radio, so there are false reports—such as claims that the epicenter was in Curaçao, very close to Venezuela, or that there would be a nationwide blackout, and so on.

Also, there’s reportedly a tsunami warning, but we’re not sure if it’s real or false; the thing is, it was issued for some Caribbean islands, but so far we haven’t heard anything about the Venezuelan Caribbean.

Communications are very poor as well; due to the landslides, they also had to shut off the gas supply in the capital.

As I write this, a friend who currently lives in the area tells me that they can feel the aftershocks from the earthquake.

Also, the goverment just announced a national state of emergency, and classes have been suspended again.

I was trying to find some way to donate to the victims of today’s events, but so far I haven’t found anything. Anyway, if I do find something, I’ll let you know here on the blog.

Truly, a heartfelt hug to all my Venezuelan siblings who are going through this difficult time—my best wishes to all of you. ♡