Image source, Reuters

The International Red Cross says rescue efforts are being slowed by blocked roads and widespread destruction following the earthquakes in Venezuela.

Regional director for the Americas, Loyce Pace, tells the BBC World Service's Newshour that rescue teams "have had to convert to motorcycles and other forms of transportation [rather than ambulances] because the streets are quite crowded with people."

Strong aftershocks continue to threaten damaged buildings, making rescue operations more dangerous.

"Time is very much running out for any survivors that might still be under the rubble. We need to reach them as quickly and as easily as possible," she says.

There have also been extraordinary tales of survival and humanity.

Pace describes how one Red Cross worker rescued his family from the rubble "with his bare hands", while others have been singing to people trapped beneath collapsed buildings to reassure them they had not been forgotten while rescue teams worked to reach them.

We are now receiving images showing how the earthquakes have damaged the state of La Guaira, one of the worst-affected areas.

Rubble from buildings can be seen in multiple places - and even buildings that are still standing, walls have fallen off.

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

Warning: This post contains distressing details.

One man in La Guaira tells BBC Mundo "there is no sophisticated equipment" to carry out rescue operations.

Civilians have joined the search and rescue efforts and are calling for a stronger presence from the state, contributor to BBC MundoNicole Kloster says.

A young person can be seen using a drone to try to locate people.

Meanwhile, some families have returned to damaged buildings to try to recover belongings. "We are trying to recover... clothes and documents," a woman with a child says, adding that she lives on the 15th floor.

"We are sleeping at the airport, in the car... we have nothing. It is very sad," she says.

One woman says "you can already smell the deceased".

She says two buildings collapsed in the immediate vicinity.

Orla Guerin
Reporting from an aid flight to Venezuela

We are on board a commercial flight set take off from Panama City for Valencia in Venezuela.

Search and rescue workers streamed on to the plane, some wearing their white helmets, all in high visibility jackets, most loaded with backpacks.

A sniffer dog has also come on board. There’s just been a round of applause for all the search teams and for the airline - COPA - which is transporting them and their equipment free.

One of the passengers is a Venezuelan from La Guaira, the worst affected area. He is rushing home to try to support relatives and friends. He looks exhausted and says he has suffered heavy losses, including four family members, a cousin, and many friends.

There are teams on this flight are from Spain, Costa Rica, Chile, Mexico, Ecuador and Panama.

One experienced paramedic tells us he believes survivors can still be found.

Steven Salazar Vasquez is part of a small team of specialists including doctors. He tells us that after 72 hours the chance of finding people alive under the rubble falls rapidly, but he "still has hope" because there are many tall structures that have only partially collapsed.

He says there may be some buildings where collapsed walls have created a viable space, which rescue workers call "the triangle of life".

Nicole Kolster
Contributor to BBC Mundo, in La Guaira

Carlos Eduardo, 31, is trapped under the rubble. His family have been calling out to him for two days.

"About an hour and a half ago, more or less, we heard from him. Well, he didn’t really speak, he groaned," his cousin tells me anxiously. He hasn't responded since.

Spanish rescuers and sniffer dogs arrived at the building, but withdrew after they found no sign of life.

But Carlos’s family have remained there, continuing to remove debris to find him.

They are clinging onto hope he can still be rescued alive.

Rescuers are continuing to search for survivors trapped in rubble.

Among them was a newborn baby, who was reunited with family in an emotional rescue, sparking cheers from relief workers.

Watch the moment below.

Nicole Kolster
Contributor to BBC Mundo, in La Guaira

Rescue efforts are under way in La Guaira, but residents are pleading for more help from the state.

Many buildings are dangerously unstable. Yet out of desperation some families are returning to partially collapsed structures to retrieve essential belongings.

Drones are being used to survey the damage and to try find victims and survivors.

Occasionally people run into the streets in a panic fearing further aftershocks.

The mood here is dizzying, surreal. It feels like when you come off a boat onto dry land.

Drone footage taken above La Guaira shows the scale of destruction caused by two back-to-back earthquakes in Venezuela.

La Guaira, a region north of the capital Caracas, was the area hardest hit by Wednesday's quakes.

Earlier, we reported at least 40 foreign nationals have been killed in the Venezuelan earthquakes.

We can bring you an update now from Chile. Its foreign ministry says a Chilean national has died.

"The foreign ministry is in contact with their family, providing assistance, guidance, and support," it says in a statement on X.

The double earthquakes have wrought destruction on Venezuela and many of those who survived them now find themselves homeless after their homes were levelled.

Many are now in temporary shelters - such as in tents or repurposed schools - while others are sleeping on the streets.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Will Grant
Reporting from Caracas

With each morning that Venezuelans wake to the aftermath of the dual earthquakes, it is a little darker, a little more grim.

It is another night in which the prayers for the miraculous recovery of missing loved one went unanswered, in which the fitful sleep for the survivors is interrupted by nightmares of collapsed buildings and moments of sheer panic.

For ex-policeman Jan Carlos Roa Garcia and his family, it was another night sleeping rough. Their building in Caracas wasn't brought down but is too dangerous to return to.

Tears rolling down his cheeks, he says he’s not sure he even knows how to rebuild his family’s life again. "If I was thirty and not fifty, then maybe. But I don't know where to begin. And so far, no-one in authority has contacted us."

At the scene of the worst-hit areas - particularly the coastal town of La Guaira - the rescue teams have worked through another night showing impressive resilience and focus to try to reach those trapped relatives.

Videos are circulating on social media of the workers successfully pulling out survivors with typical Venezuelan good humour and spirit which bring a lump to the throat.

This feels like the hardest moment in Venezuela's modern history in a country that has had more than its fair share in recent years.

Matt Spivey
Live reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Wednesday

At 18:04 local time (23:04 BST) an earthquake of magnitude 7.2 strikes in the north of Venezuela.

About 39 seconds later a second earthquake of magnitude 7.5 strikes 28km (17.4 miles) south-east of Yumare, a town in Yaracuy state. This was the strongest to hit the country since 1900.

Thursday

At around 00:50, Venezuela’s acting president Delcy Rodríguez reports at least 32 deaths and more than 700 injured. She says this doesn’t include any figures from the state most affected by the earthquakes, La Guaira.

As rescuers and the army mobilise to clear debris, aid groups around the world scramble to deliver help to Venezuela, with the US pledging $150m (£113.4m) in assistance.

Friday

By the morning, support teams from countries including Mexico, El Salvador, Switzerland and Spain land in Venezuela, with personnel from more countries and organisations expected.

Around 08:30 local time (13:30 BST) Rodriguez says the death toll has risen to 589 people and the number of injured stands at 2,980. She adds that the hard-hit state of La Guaira will be "militarised".

The death toll updates again at around 13:30, asVenezuelan lawmaker Jorge Rodríguez said at least 920 people have been killed and at least 3,360 injured.

Saturday

The search for survivors continues, as Rodríguez says she has faith teams will find the survivors among the rubble.

The UN's aid chief Tom Fletcher has praised the global response to the earthquakes, telling Radio 4's Today programme that almost 2,000 international workers have come to Venezuela to help with rescue efforts.

These are some of the latest pictures of international rescue teams heading to the country.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

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Acting President of Venezuela Delcy Rodríguez says that the "priority" is rescuing those still alive.

In a video message posted by the Venezuelan government, she thanks all the emergency responders for their work in the recovery efforts so far.

The "most strategic thing" is the rescuing of the people who are still alive, that "is our priority", she says.

"We have faith and hope that we are going to rescue them," she adds.

Three days on from the devastating earthquakes in Venezuela, new footage showing the moments immediately following the quakes has emerged.

The footage shows dust rising and people gathering on the streets of Caracas, taking stock of the damage and comforting each other.

Image source, PA Media

King Charles III says that he and Queen Camilla were "deeply saddened to learn of the devastating earthquakes" and the "tragic loss of life and suffering they have caused", in a public statement addressed to the people of Venezuela.

"At this most difficult of times, we send our profound sympathy to all those who have lost loved ones," it says, adding that "we greatly admire the resilience and strength of the Venezuelan people".

Acting President of Venezuela Delcy Rodríguez has thanked the King for his message on her social media. "We value this gesture of support" and the "recognition of the strength of our people", she says.

Image source, EPA/Shutterstock

The UN's humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher says the global response to the deadly earthquakes has been "really good".

With teams pouring in from Russia, Ukraine, America, Europe and the Middle East, "politics all falls away at this point," he tells the Today programme.

Fletcher says that the UN has currently deployed 39 rescue teams and has seen almost 2,000 international rescue workers surging into Venezuela to help.

The UN teams also have 111 rescue dogs, he says. Their strong sense of smell and ability to navigate tricky terrain make dogs critically important in search and rescue.

With the UN having lost "almost half" its aid budget in the last 18 months, funding is a challenge, says Fletcher.

Devastating back-to-back earthquakes in Venezuela have killed at least 920 people, according to officials.

Among them are a number of foreign nationals. Here's what we have learned from international media reports.

In an update from Beja Airbase last night, Secretary of State for Communities Emídio Sousa said 28 Portuguese nationals had been killed, according to local media outlets.

Seven Chinese nationals have been killed, Xinhua News Agency reported citing the Chinese embassy in Venezuela.

Spanish media reports five nationals have been killed and 119 remain missing, citing Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares.

Two Brazilian citizens were also among those killed, the government confirmed.

Italy's foreign ministry reports the death of an Italian-Venezuelan national following the twin earthquakes.

Image source, EPA/Shutterstock

Today is a "crucial day" for search and rescue, says the UN's humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher.

Speaking to Radio 4's Today programme, he says rescuers are "driven on minute by minute, hour by hour, by the sound of the survivors underneath the rubble," adding: "The worst thing is when those voices go quiet."

The exact number of people missing is unclear. Acting president of Venezuela Delcy Rodríguez put the figure at 172 in her most recent update on Friday, but others say it is likely much higher.

Speaking separately to AFP, Fletcher says that more than 50,000 people are missing. A civilian-run missing persons site, external also puts the figure in the tens of thousands, reporting more than 54,000 people who have been unreachable by family members.

The site also shows that 12,215 people have been located, but does not disclose in what condition they were found.