A restless night of shaking continued into Thursday morning across northwestern Venezuela, as several powerful earthquakes struck the region, according to the United States Geological Survey (U.S.G.S.). These seismic events were also distinctly felt in neighboring Colombia, raising concerns across the border.
The series of quakes commenced Wednesday at 6:21 p.m. with a 6.2-magnitude tremor in Venezuela’s Zulia state, approximately 15 miles east of Mene Grande, a city strategically located near Maracaibo, the heart of Venezuela’s oil industry. Initial reports indicated no casualties from this first shock.
The shaking continued with a 4.9-magnitude quake at 10:42 p.m., also in Zulia. This was followed by a more significant 6.3-magnitude earthquake at 11:51 p.m. in the state of Trujillo, and yet another 5.8-magnitude event early Thursday at 2:55 a.m., again in Trujillo. The U.S.G.S. noted that all these quakes occurred at a shallow depth of less than nine miles, increasing their potential to cause damage.
In total, Venezuela experienced two dozen smaller earthquakes and aftershocks throughout the night, as confirmed by Vice President Delcy Rodríguez during an early Thursday interview on state television. She assured the public that the nation remained on high alert but, fortunately, had no reports of casualties.
Luis Gerardo Caldera, the governor of Zulia, stated on social media that local authorities were actively assessing any damage, particularly at the Santa Bárbara church in Maracaibo. Images and videos circulating online depicted various levels of damage to buildings and roads, prompting residents in Zulia to evacuate their homes as a precautionary measure.
Across the border, strong shaking was also reported in parts of Colombia. Medellín Mayor Fico Gutiérrez noted that his northwestern Colombian city, situated about 400 miles from the epicenters, felt the tremors, but no immediate damage had been reported. Similarly, Mayor Jaime Andrés Beltrán of Bucaramanga, a north-central Colombian city, announced via social media that authorities were on high alert, prepared for any potential rescue operations.