JAKARTA - The number of deaths due to the devastating earthquake that hit Venezuela has risen to 1,450, said National Assembly Chairman Jorge Rodriguez.
"The number of deaths has reached 1,450," Rodriguez said in a televised speech, giving the latest official figure, an increase of 20 people from Saturday, as reported by Anadolu from AFP (29/6).
Two powerful earthquakes shook Venezuela on Wednesday afternoon, with magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5, according to the US Geological Survey.
Venezuelan President Delcy Rodriguez's office announced a state of emergency after the country was hit by a series of powerful earthquakes.
The United Nations estimates that around 50,000 people are missing after the earthquake, which had triggered a tsunami warning.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was "deeply saddened" by the disaster as the global body pledged to help Venezuela.
The strongest earthquake to hit Venezuela in 126 years will require "a massive collective effort," U.N. aid chief Tom Fletcher said in a statement.
It is known that the northern coast of Venezuela is located on the border between the Caribbean and South American tectonic plates, but has not experienced a significant earthquake since 1997, when 73 people were killed.
Another earthquake in 1967 killed 236 people.
The 7.5-magnitude earthquake on Wednesday was the strongest since October 29, 1900, when a 7.7-magnitude quake shook off the coast.
The quake was felt across Colombia, where residents in Bogota evacuated buildings as a precaution.
Tremors were also reported in several cities in northern Brazil, according to the country's seismic monitoring network.
Last Friday, Rodriguez announced that 302 aftershocks had been recorded after two massive earthquakes on Wednesday.
Aftershocks occurred along three major geological fault lines that stretch across Venezuela, he said.
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