Venezuela rocked by powerful back-to-back earthquakes

A strong earthquake shook north-central Venezuela on Wednesday afternoon, west ⁠of Caracas, with residents in neighbouring Colombia also reporting feeling tremors. The earthquake registered at ⁠a magnitude 7.1 ⁠in ​Venezuela, about an hour west of the city Valencia at a depth of 13km (8 miles), according to the ⁠US Geological Survey. A second powerful earthquake with a magnitude of 7.5 struck shortly after. The US Geological Survey said the second quake had a depth of 10km and its epicentre was 16km (10 miles) south-west of Morón. Many Venezuelans were at home when the first quake hit, celebrating a public holiday commemorating an ⁠1821 military victory which secured Venezuela’s independence from Spain. Municipal police officers evacuate an injured person from a collapsed building Photograph: Juan Barreto/AFP/Getty Images Residents in Caracas ​rushed to evacuate as the ‌quake shook buildings. Maria Romero, ‌an 80-year-old pensioner on the south side of Caracas, said that ‌the police helped her evacuate her building. “This earthquake was horrible, even worse than the one in 1967,” she added. According to videos from Reuters witnesses, fire trucks were on the streets in Caracas, and the facades of some buildings had suffered significant ‌damage. Many residents in Caracas lost power or internet service right after the quake. One witness said that cracks ​had formed up the side of their apartment and glass in the entryway had shattered. …