The accounts of Caracas residents describing the dramatic moments they experienced during the two earthquakes that struck Venezuela are shocking, painting a picture of “biblical destruction.”

Authorities report numerous deaths and injuries, the exact number of which has not yet been determined; however, according to an initial assessment announced by the country’s interim president, Delcy Rodríguez, at least 32 people have lost their lives and another 700 have been injured.

Rescue teams have rushed to the scene from the very beginning to locate people trapped under the rubble following the powerful earthquakes that struck the country in quick succession.

#URGENT Video of the exact moment when the (old) CUAM building collapsed on Universidad Avenue in Naguanagua. #EarthquakeInVenezuela pic.twitter.com/EWaQDXwPlp

— Andrews Abreu (@AndrewsAbreu) June 25, 2026

“We heard people screaming”

Many Venezuelans were at home when the earthquakes struck.

“As soon as it started, we heard people screaming,” said Astrid Ramírez, a 41-year-old journalist in western Caracas, adding: “Everyone was running down the stairs.”

Residents throughout Caracas—which had also been struck by a deadly 6.3-magnitude earthquake in 1967—rushed to evacuate buildings as they shook.

“There was a very loud noise. Things fell inside the house, like containers in the refrigerator. I’ve never experienced anything like this before,” said Coro Martínez, 56, who lives in eastern Caracas.

María Romero, an 80-year-old retiree in southern Caracas, said the police helped her get out of her home. “This earthquake was terrible, even worse than the one in 1967,” she said.

The BBC reported earlier that people could be heard calling for help from beneath the rubble of a collapsed building.

“‘Call for help. We’re here,’ that’s what you can hear,” she said.

READ ALSO: Chaos in Venezuela after two powerful earthquakes: Areas leveled, initial toll (VIDEO)

After the earthquake, others “were still outside, waiting to be safe in case of an aftershock,” reports the British network.

“The recommendation is not to return to the building,” it adds.

Maria Eliz, a resident of the Caracas suburb of Palos Grandes, described how her apartment “has some cracked walls. There are fallen power poles; we have no electricity or cell service.”

“I’ve never seen anything like this before”

Manuel Guevara Baro told CNNi that the earthquakes that struck Caracas on Wednesday were “horrific” and were unlike anything he had ever experienced before in the Venezuelan capital.

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Guevara Barro told CNNi.

“I lived through the 1967 earthquake in Caracas, an earthquake that also claimed many lives, but it was nothing like the one we experienced today,” he added.

Guevara Baro, who lives on the 9th floor of a building in the Los Palos Grandes neighborhood, said he was reading a book when the tremors began. His surroundings were shaking so violently that he couldn’t hold onto anything around him.

“I couldn’t even walk because of the intensity of the shaking,” Guevara Baro told CNNi, noting also that the tremors seemed to last a long time.

Once he felt the situation had calmed down, he put on his shoes and decided to try to escape by going down the stairs of his apartment building. The hallways were dark because the power was out, and water was leaking from broken pipes.

Guevara Baro and other neighbors made their way down the stairs, slowly, until they reached the outside along with other people.

“People were crying. People were in a state of shock,” Guevara Baro told CNNi.

He also reported that at least two buildings collapsed in his neighborhood and many others were damaged.

“It was truly horrific, terrifying,” he added.

Trapped in elevators

Tony Frangi Maoud, a journalist in Caracas, had just stepped into the elevator of his apartment building, on his way to watch a World Cup match with friends, when the two powerful earthquakes struck.

“The moment I stepped into the elevator, it started swaying violently from side to side and descending at a very fast pace,” he told CNNi.

“At first, I thought it was just a malfunction,” he said, before realizing what was happening.

As soon as it stopped, the doors opened in the basement, and he and his friend managed to get out and reunite with their neighbors and family, who had evacuated the building.

His building escaped serious damage, but he said that many buildings had collapsed in northern Caracas. His social media feeds have been flooded with posts from friends and relatives about missing people, he said, describing the situation as “a truly heartbreaking moment.”

“The coming days will be truly devastating for all Venezuelans,” he said.

“It was like a horror movie”

María Alejandra, a survivor of the earthquake, told Reuters: “I was here when I managed to get dressed.”

“We managed to open the door any way we could. There was a cloud of smoke that kept us from seeing. And when we went downstairs, the scene looked like a horror movie. We had to climb over the rubble,” she added,

“The building manager with the baby and all the neighbors were coming down. But from that building, I only saw that one family come out,” he added.

Source: Cnn.gr