Death toll for Venezuela earthquakes rise to 920 as Venezuelans try to reach missing relatives

Di number of pipo wey die for Venezuelan earthquakes don jump to at least 920, wit 3,360 injured, according to President of di National Assembly Jorge Rodríguez.

Na earthquakes wit magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5 hit di kontri one minute apart on Wednesday night, and di second one na di strongest to hit Venezuela since 1900.

Buildings collapse and residents run enta streets make dem save dia lives as di two earthquakes shake di capital city, Caracas, while rescue workers dey rush find survivors wey fit still dey trapped under di rubble.

Rescuers dey search di rubble for Caracas and di state of La Guaira, wia di UN say more dan 100 buildings don collapse.

Di second earthquake na di strongest to hit Venezuela since 1900.

Di earthquake wit magnitude of 7.2 bin strike north of Venezuela shortly afta 18:00 local time on Wednesday (23:00 BST), and di second quake of 7.5 magnitude strike less dan one minute later

Di US Geological Survey earlier calculate 44% chance of more dan 10,000 fatality, and 30% chance of more dan 100,000.

Di earthquakes affect several states. Interim President Delcy Rodríguez tok say La Guaira, one region north of di capital, na di place wey suffer pass.

Govment don declare state of emergency, while airport, railway and transport services don stop.

Both earthquakes shake di capital Caracas, wey get around five million residents around 6:04pm local time (10:04pm GMT) on Wednesday.

Di first earthquake get magnitude 7.2 and e hit Yaracuy State, west of Caracas, for depth of 22 kilometres, according to di US Geological Survey (USGS).

Less dan one minute later, anoda stronger earthquake of magnitude 7.5 strike nearby for depth of about 10 kilometres.

Although both earthquakes start outside di capital, strong tremors still shake di whole city, causing buildings to shake and some collapse completely.

Jorge Rodríguez, di President of Venezuela National Assembly, tok say about 250 buildings don damage or collapse, and most of dem dey for La Guaira.

Pictures and videos show debris scata all ova di streets. For some videos, pipo fit dey hear pipo dey shout for help.

BBC don verify one video wey show one 10-storey hotel wey collapse completely for La Guaira. Anoda video show pipo dey scream and run as one multi-storey building collapse for El Junquito, west of Caracas.

Oda verified videos also show destruction for places outside di capital. One video show one multi-storey building, wey reports say na hotel, collapse completely for Tucacas, for Venezuela coast, about 250 kilometres (155 miles) northwest of Caracas.

Rescuers for di capital dey search through di rubble for survivors and dem dey hear as pipo dey call for help.

BBC reporter Vanessa Silva wey dey report from Caracas say buildings no get power supply and di metro system dey completely closed,

Venezuela bin dey celebrate national holiday, and many pipo bin dey for house wen di quakes happun.

One BBC journalist write say her sister for Caracas bin send her audio message, "Di house bin just shake horribly. E still dey shake."

Buildings across di kontri capital Caracas don scata and pipo still dey fear say di number go continue to rise.

Di main airport for di kontri dey closed due to damage, afta video show how pipo bin dey run comot from di corridors as di earthquakes dey happun.

BBC Mundo contributor Nicole Kolster tok say dem hear as pipo dey call for help from under di rubble of collapsed building.

"'Ask for help. We dey hia,' na wetin you go hear," she tok.

Afta di quake, oda pipo "still dey outside dey wait for safety in case aftershock happun," Kolster add.

"Di recommendation na make pipo no go back inside di building," she explain.

Maria Elise, one local from di Caracas suburb of Palos Grandes, describe how her apartment "get some cracked walls. Utility poles don fall, we no get electricity, no signal."

Di US don pledge medical and humanitarian support as Donald Trump describe di quakes as "massive in scale" wit "devastating number of deaths".

According to one British school teacher, many buildings for Caracas don pieces and dia walls dey fall down wit visible cracks.

Alan Chung, wey don live for Venezuela for seven years, tell Radio 4's Today programme say im bin dey for restaurant di time wey di quakes happun, bifor im run outside and see cloud of dust" and electricity lines wey dey "explode".

Im tok say pipo for di kontri don master minor earthquakes, but dis one na "di most serious for a long time".

"Venezuelans dey veri resilient," Chung tok.

Wetin cause di earthquakes

Venezuela dey for di seismically active zone wia two tectonic plates, di Caribbean and di South American dey meet.

According to di US Geological Survey, di second and largest of di two quakes wey happun occur as a result of "shallow strike-slip faulting" near di boundary of dis plates.

Dis na wen faults, or fractures between di plates, move horizontally and wen di movement happun quickly.

"While e dey commonly plotted as points on maps, earthquakes of dis size dey more appropriately described as slip ova a larger fault area," USGS report.

Di pair of quakes today "likely indicate complex, rupture interaction process", di organisation tok.

Aftershocks, including "some potentially wit strong shaking" still dey possible, e add.

Venezuela don experience two earthquakes back to back and both of dem dey veri shallow, less dan 30km below ground.

One of di important factors wey dey determine di impact of earthquake na how far below di Earth surface wey e happun.

Di closer e dey to di surface di more shaking and potential damage wey go fit happun.

World leaders react to Venezuela earthquakes

World leaders don dey show support for Venezuela sake of di earthquakes wey happun on Wednesday.

France President Emmanuel Macron tok for post on X say im extend solidarity to di victims, dia loved ones, and di pipo wey authorities mobilise.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez say all of im support "and dat of Spain", dey wit di pipo of Venezuela as e add say im and im kontri thoughts dey wit di victims and dia families.

China foreign ministry tok-tok pesin, Guo Jiakun tell tori pipo say di kontri go do wetin dem fit do to help Venezuela. Im add say tori neva dey of any Chinese wey be victim.

President of El Salvador Nayib Bukele say dem don ready to send 300 rescuers and paramedics wit 50 tons of equipment, medicines and essential supplies to Caracas from di kontri.

Earlier, US President Donald Trump bin tok say im don "instruct all agencies of our govment to get ready to move quickly", while Secretary of State Marco Rubio say di kontri bin "immediately send search and rescue teams, medical resources and humanitarian assistance" to Venezuela.

Some foto from di earthquakes