Advertisement 1This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.

A Venezuelan flag is seen painted on a damaged wall amid the rubble of a collapsed building following earthquakes in Caraballeda, La Guaira state, Venezuela, on June 26, 2026. Photo by MARYORIN MENDEZ /AFP via Getty ImagesArticle contentEarthquake victims are overwhelming healthcare centres in Venezuela’s coastal state of La Guaira and beyond, pushing an already fragile health system past its limits.Sign In or Create an Accountor View more offersArticle contentTwo powerful 7.2 and 7.5 earthquakes struck within a minute of each other on Wednesday evening, toppling buildings and severely damaging the country’s main international airport. By Friday afternoon, authorities reported nearly 3,400 injured people and a death toll approaching 1,000 nationwide. More than 200 aftershocks had occurred.Article contentArticle contentArticle contentThe first wave of patients was mainly survivors suffering crush injuries and multiple fractures after being pulled from collapsed buildings. But physicians warn the crisis is entering a more dangerous phase as people trapped for days beneath the rubble began arriving with kidney failure, crush syndrome and limbs that can no longer be saved. Skin infections, gastrointestinal illnesses and psychological trauma are expected to follow in the coming weeks.Article contentNP PostedGet a dash of perspective along with the trending news of the day in a very readable format.By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.Thanks for signing up!A welcome email is on its way. If you don’t see it, please check your junk folder.The next issue of NP Posted will soon be in your inbox.We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try againInterested in more newsletters? Browse here.Article contentThe earthquakes are testing a healthcare system weakened by years of economic collapse, shortages and the exodus of medical workers.Article content“This new national tragedy strikes while Venezuela remains in a prolonged humanitarian emergency,” said Huníades Urbina, a pediatric intensive care physician and member of Venezuela’s National Academy of Medicine. “We already lacked the capacity to care for patients on an ordinary day. Imagine what happens when hundreds of people emerge from collapsed buildings needing emergency treatment.”Article contentAccording to Urbina, public hospitals entered the disaster with shortages of emergency supplies and surgical material, about half the hospital beds they once had, and radiology equipment that is largely obsolete or no longer functioning. Around 30% of the country’s physicians and 70% of its nurses have left Venezuela over the past decade, he said, citing figures from the Venezuelan Medical Federation.Article contentArticle contentThe shortages are evident inside La Guaira’s healthcare centres. At one outpatient clinic on Thursday, electricity was available only through a backup generator powering the vaccine refrigerator. Patients were lying on mattresses, benches and the parking lot pavement because treatment rooms were full, while doctors improvised additional care areas outside the building.Article contentRead More Mothers search, men weep amid debris of Venezuela earthquakes The remarkable story of a Haitian orphan’s journey in Canada Advertisement 1Story continues belowThis advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.Article contentVenezuela’s healthcare system was struggling long before the earthquakes, said Jaime Lorenzo, director of the nonprofit organization Médicos Unidos de Venezuela. Patients routinely pay out-of-pocket for diagnostic tests and are often expected to bring their own medical supplies.Article contentAt Ricardo Baquero González Hospital in Caracas, nurses, physicians and medical students worked through the night after the earthquakes. The hospital had only 12 nurses on duty, but “they multiplied themselves by 10,” Lorenzo said.Article contentBy 10 p.m. Wednesday, just four hours after the quakes, the hospital had exhausted critical supplies, including elastic bandages and tetanus vaccines. Residents began arriving with whatever they could spare, including one man who donated diapers that had belonged to his late mother.Advertisement 1This advertisement has not loaded yet.Trending Who is the billionaire donor family said to be behind Trump’s delay in opening Gordie Howe bridge? Canada Subscriber only. The Western Surrender: Canada is the wokest country in the world Subscriber only NP Comment Advertisement 2Story continues belowThis advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. ‘Open the damn bridge’: U.S. Senate hopeful says Trump is keeping Gordie Howe bridge closed to help donor Canada Colby Cosh: How long before Statistics Canada loses complete touch with the economy? NP Comment NP View: Canada, Dominion of freedom NP Comment

Advertisement 2AdvertisementThis advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.

Article content“In the first phase, the donations came from Venezuelans themselves,” Lorenzo said.Article contentIn La Guaira, healthcare centres improvised medical tents and mobile units, while humanitarian organizations rushed supplies to overwhelmed facilities.Article contentOne such group is Project HOPE, which accelerated deliveries that would normally be spread over several weeks. It sent 15 to 20 pallets of medicines, equipment and emergency supplies Friday to hospitals and outpatient centres in La Guaira and the neighboring Miranda state.Article content“The demand has been extraordinarily high since Thursday night,” said César Jiménez, Project HOPE’s grants and projects manager in Venezuela. “We’re increasing the volume of supplies we normally distribute and bringing them forward because hospitals need them now.”Article contentIn Caracas hospitals, physicians are increasingly treating survivors suffering the consequences of prolonged entrapment beneath collapsed buildings. Many arrive severely dehydrated after spending days without food or clean water, developing rhabdomyolysis — a condition in which damaged muscle tissue releases toxins into the bloodstream — leading to acute kidney failure. Others require amputations after crushed limbs lose their blood supply.Article contentArticle contentDoctors have also begun organizing outside hospital walls. Volunteer physicians are offering free telemedicine consultations through social media for minor ailments in an effort to reduce pressure on emergency rooms, while psychiatrists are publishing guidance to help survivors cope with anxiety and trauma.Article contentIn hospitals, doctors compile handwritten lists of patients who were admitted and post them on entrances to help families who are searching for missing relatives. Isabel González-Bocco, a Venezuelan physician living in Boston, has been collecting such records and other information from doctors, journalists and patients’ relatives before digitizing them into spreadsheets that have become one of the main tools families use to locate loved ones.Article content“Everything is being managed by civilians,” González-Bocco said.Article contentHer registry contained about 3,000 hospitalized patients by Friday afternoon, though she cautioned the number remains incomplete because many victims arrived without identification documents. The dead retrieved from collapsed buildings are taken directly to morgues.Article contentArticle contentMeanwhile, an opposition-run platform listed more than 60,000 people as missing as of Friday.Article contentSome private hospitals have also opened their doors free of charge. One Caracas clinic treated more than 20 earthquake victims Wednesday night but had received only two by Friday, both transferred from La Guaira. Traumatologists and surgeons volunteered to reinforce emergency departments.Article contentDoctors say the burden on hospitals is likely to shift rather than disappear.Article content“We worked with whatever we had,” Lorenzo said after finishing his shift at the Ricardo Baquero González Hospital. “But we received every patient who arrived — and they are still arriving.”Article contentOur website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark nationalpost.com and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here.Article content

Latest from Shopping Essentials These are the world’s most beautiful airports for 2026 An architecture and design jury has highlighted seven terminals you won’t mind missing your connection in 18 hours ago Travel Made in Canada: You can’t top these patriotic T-shirts for July 1 How can you celebrate your home and native land without the proper attire? Enter the classic Canada Day T-shirt. 19 hours ago Life When does Prime Day end in Canada? Here’s exactly when to stop shopping Amazon’s 4-day sale ends tonight, but times vary based on where you’re located in Canada 20 hours ago Amazon Prime Day Advertisement 3Story continues belowThis advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 5 pop-of-colour pieces for summer from Canadian brands From a sporty dress to a cropped toper, to a perfect lipstick shade, these five pop-of-colour finds from Canadian brands are sure to brighten up your seasonal style. 21 hours ago Fashion & Beauty Flight attendants and gate agents reveal 11 things you should never do when flying Airline staff share passenger behaviours that make their jobs extra difficult and travel extra miserable 23 hours ago Travel Featured Local Savings

Original source: ca