USGS estimates up to $100 billion in economic losses

Quake strikes nation already battered by hyperinflation, oil slump

Aging hospitals, power grid could worsen disaster toll

A rescue worker rests with his head bowed into his hands in Caracas on Thursday, after a magnitude-7.2 earthquake struck Venezuela and other parts of the Caribbean. [Getty Images]
A rescue worker rests with his head bowed into his hands in Caracas on Thursday, after a magnitude-7.2 earthquake struck Venezuela and other parts of the Caribbean. [Getty Images]

A powerful earthquake — the worst to hit Venezuela in more than a century — has dealt a devastating blow to an economy already on the verge of collapse. With the country long mired in hyperinflation and a crippled oil industry, the disaster could generate up to $100 billion in economic losses, according to projections now circulating among experts.

The US Geological Survey (USGS) estimated Thursday that economic damage from the earthquake could range from $10 billion to as much as $100 billion. The upper estimate would be roughly equivalent to Venezuela's entire annual gross domestic product.

Seismologist Lucy Jones of the California Institute of Technology warned that secondary disasters could compound the toll significantly. "If the earthquake damages gas lines and power facilities, large fires could break out, and that kind of cascading damage could nearly double the economic losses from the quake," she said.

Venezuela holds the world's largest proven oil reserves but has endured a prolonged economic crisis driven by US-led sanctions, staggering inflation, government corruption and a structural decline in its oil industry. The country's GDP has shrunk by roughly 80 percent since 2013.

Political turmoil has added to the instability. After the Donald Trump administration arrested former President Nicolas Maduro in January, Vice President Delcy Rodriguez assumed the role of acting president. Since then, the US has eased some sanctions on Venezuela and oil output has gradually increased, but ordinary citizens have yet to feel any improvement in their daily economic lives.

CNN described the earthquake as a catastrophe that struck Venezuela at the worst possible moment for its economy.

The death toll from the earthquake rose to at least 188 as of Thursday. National Assembly Speaker Jorge Rodriguez announced in a televised briefing that day that 188 people had been killed and 1,520 others injured.

Tom Fletcher, the UN under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief, also issued a statement Thursday expressing concern over the compounding crises. "Even before this earthquake struck, around 8 million people in Venezuela were in need of humanitarian assistance," he said.

According to Assembly Speaker Rodriguez, at least 250 buildings were damaged, along with eight hospitals, 20 shopping centers and 46 public facilities. The destruction has left residents struggling to obtain basic necessities, including vehicle fuel and common medicines.

CNN warned that "the earthquake is expected to deliver an additional shock to an already fragile supply chain," adding that "the natural disaster will not only severely undermine hopes for economic recovery, but the damage could be far worse given that public infrastructure — including hospitals, power and water systems — has been critically neglected due to years of underinvestment."

The government's capacity to respond is also severely constrained by the prolonged economic crisis. The healthcare system is already near its breaking point, and the country lacks the fiscal resources needed to fund large-scale reconstruction.

Meanwhile, the international community is mobilizing relief efforts for Venezuela following the worst earthquake to strike the country in over a century, with nations pledging rescue personnel and emergency aid.

The US Department of State announced Thursday it would provide $150 million in emergency assistance to Venezuela and dispatch urban search-and-rescue teams. The teams are drawn from the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department and the Los Angeles County Fire Department, and include firefighters, emergency medical personnel, structural engineering specialists and search-dog handlers. Both teams previously conducted rescue operations in Jamaica following hurricane damage last year.

The IMF and the World Bank are also working with the Venezuelan government to assess the full extent of the damage, with decisions on financial support to follow based on those findings.

Several Latin American countries — including Mexico, Ecuador, El Salvador and Brazil — have also dispatched rescue and medical teams and sent relief supplies. Pope Leo XIV contributed 100,000 euros ($114,000) to Venezuela through the Papal Almoner's office, which oversees the Vatican's charitable activities.


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