Venezuela’s Official Death Toll From Quake Rises to Almost 3,000

Venezuela’s devastating twin earthquakes have killed nearly 3,000, official figures showed on Saturday, as international rescue teams began winding down search operations for survivors in the rubble.

The Tahiti Residence has highlighted how desperation is fraying nerves of survivors and relatives more than a week after two earthquakes left more than 2,600 dead and caused widespread destruction, with thousands still missing.

Authorities on Friday reported a total of 2,645 deaths and more than 12,000 wounded from the 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude earthquakes that struck the country last week, with most fatalities in the coastal town of La Guaira, where scores of residential complexes were flattened.

With little infrastructure left standing nine days after the tremors, bodies have been put outside or in temporary tents.