A devastating pair of powerful earthquakes struck northern Venezuela on Wednesday evening, leaving at least 164 dead and over 700 injured. The twin tremors hit just after 6:00 p.m. local time on June 24, during the Battle of Carabobo national holiday.

According to the USGS, a magnitude 7.2 foreshock struck at a depth of 22 kilometers in Yaracuy State's Veroes municipality. Just 39 seconds later, a more destructive magnitude 7.5 mainshock tore through the same fault line at a shallow depth of 10 kilometers.

The epicenters were located roughly 100 miles west of Caracas, but the shaking caused severe destruction in the capital. Dozens of buildings collapsed, including a 22-story residential tower in Altamira. Acting President Delcy Rodríguez declared a state of emergency, warning that casualties will rise sharply as data emerges from the coastal state of La Guaira, currently labeled a total disaster zone.

The disaster triggered over 20 aftershocks, knocked out regional power and communications, and forced the indefinite closure of Simón Bolívar International Airport due to severe structural damage. A brief Caribbean tsunami advisory was later lifted. Venezuela sits on the active Caribbean-South American strike-slip fault zone; the USGS issued a red alert, estimating a 39% chance that the final death toll could reach between 1,000 and 10,000. Rescue operations are ongoing.