US Secretary of State Marco Rubio looks on as US President Donald Trump speaks to the press following US military actions in Venezuela, at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Palm Beach, Florida, on January 3, 2026.<\/p>\n
Jim Watson | Afp | Getty Images<\/p>\n
President Donald Trump<\/a> pledged Wednesday to deploy U.S. resources to earthquake-stricken Venezuela after back-to-back tremors of magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 struck near the country’s northern coast, flattening buildings in the capital Caracas and prompting a state of emergency. <\/p>\n “The U.S. stands ready, willing, and able to help,” Trump said in a Truth Social post<\/a> Wednesday evening stateside. The president added that he had instructed all government agencies to prepare to “move quickly,” calling Venezuela’s people the “new and great friends.”<\/p>\n Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau said earlier in the day<\/a> that the U.S. was in touch with Venezuelan authorities and has been mobilizing assistance for the South American nation. <\/p>\n The State Department has already mobilized a disaster assistance team and task force<\/a> to deliver and coordinate critical assistance to Venezuelans, including search and rescue teams, medical supplies, and humanitarian resources, according to senior State Department official Jeremy Lewin. <\/p>\n The U.S. Geological Survey issued two consecutive red alerts<\/a> through its PAGER system, and estimated a 41% probability that fatalities could exceed 10,000 and a 17% chance they could reach 100,000. The authority also projected that the devastating earthquake could dent Venezuela’s GDP by up to 7%. <\/p>\n Venezuela’s acting president Delcy Rodriguez declared a state of emergency in a national address<\/a> on Wednesday night, and later said 32 people were killed and 700 were injured, according to Reuters. <\/p>\n In a video message<\/a> posted on X Thursday morning, Rodriguez thanked the Trump administration for providing “support and solidarity,” and the Dominican Republic for sending rescue teams to Venezuela.<\/p>\n China and Brazil have sent humanitarian aid to the country, she said, and the Qatar government has prepared a rescue brigade set to arrive Thursday. <\/p>\n Rescue workers and municipal police officers work at the site of a collapsed building following an earthquake in Caracas on June 24, 2026.<\/p>\n Manaure Quintero | Afp | Getty Images<\/p>\n