Twin deadly earthquakes, the strongest recorded in Venezuela in the past century, struck the country’s northern coast overnight, causing massive destruction in the capital city of Caracas and surrounding areas. There are fears of thousands of casualties.

Members of the Jewish community in Caracas described moments of absolute terror and helplessness. Elais Faraj, who was awakened by the earthquake, told Channel 12, “We felt like we were on a ship in the middle of a storm. The building shook nonstop. It lasted a very long time, then stopped for a few seconds, and then we felt another tremor. We felt like the building was about to move. It just kept going and going. You see the ceiling that could fall on you and the walls moving. Things were falling.”

Benny Mizrachi, another member of the Jewish community, described the destruction inside homes, “Inside the house, everything simply fell and broke—pictures, vases, and televisions. We saw blocks and walls collapsing in nearby buildings and large cracks opening up. The fear is intense. There’s nothing you can do. You have no control over anything.”

Footage he sent to Channel 12 shows his home shaking violently while objects crash to the floor.

According to community members, residents evacuated to open areas away from buildings because of the real concern over aftershocks. “Everyone in the Jewish community is okay,” Mizrachi said.

Chabad emissaries in Venezuela, Leibel and Chaftziva Schochet, were at home when the earthquake struck. Chafziva recounted the frightening moments in a conversation with Ynet:

“At six o’clock in the evening, I was home alone. I received an alert on my phone that an earthquake was about to happen, and within a split second, a terrible earthquake began. The entire house moved like an airplane in turbulence for fifteen minutes. There are cracks in the walls. Pictures fell off the walls. There is no electricity and no water.”

Following the severe reports and under the instructions of Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem began holding urgent assessments with all relevant agencies.

The ministry is immediately examining assistance options and preparing for the possible deployment of an Israeli rescue and aid delegation to the disaster area in Venezuela.

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)