Buildings collapse as quake rocks north-central Venezuela, capital Caracas

CARACAS: A strong earthquake shook north-central Venezuela on Wednesday afternoon, west of Caracas, bringing down buildings in the capital, though authorities did not immediately report any casualties.

The earthquake registered at a magnitude 7.1, about 160km west of Caracas, at a depth of 13km, according to the US Geological Survey.

“Some buildings have been brought down (in Caracas), houses have collapsed,” Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello said on state television. He did not give any initial estimates of deaths or injuries, and said protocols were being followed to gather more information.

Video footage showed emergency workers climbing into the ruins of one collapsed building in the capital as night began to fall.

Many Venezuelans were at home when the quake hit, celebrating a public holiday commemorating an 1821 military victory which secured Venezuela’s independence from Spain.

“There was a very loud crash. Things fell in the house, jugs inside the refrigerator. I’ve never experienced anything like it,” said Coro Martinez, 56, who lives in eastern Caracas.

Residents in the capital, which was rocked by a deadly earthquake in 1967, rushed to evacuate as the quake shook buildings.

Maria Romero, an 80-year-old pensioner on the south side of Caracas, said that the police helped her get out. “This earthquake was horrible, even worse than the one in 1967,” she added.

Fire trucks could be seen on the streets in the capital, and the facades of some buildings had suffered significant damage.

One witness said that cracks had formed up the side of their apartment and glass in the entryway had shattered. Many residents in Caracas also lost power and internet services.

“Several walls in my building broke open or cracks formed,” a witness in Valencia, to the west of Caracas, told Reuters. “As soon as it stopped (shaking), my husband and I evacuated.”

The US Tsunami Warning System issued a tsunami threat for Puerto Rico and the US and British Virgin Islands following the earthquake, adding that islands off the coast of Venezuela – Aruba, Curacao and Bonaire – could also be hit by hazardous waves. It withdrew the warning within about an hour.