By Vivian Sequera and Mayela Armas
LA GUAIRA/CARACAS, June 26 (Reuters) – The official death toll from twin earthquakes that flattened parts of Caracas and surrounding areas rose to 920, lawmaker Jorge Rodriguez, president of the national assembly, said on Friday.
The government has estimated hundreds of people still trapped and missing nearly two days after magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 tremors struck about 160 km (100 miles) west of Caracas.
A website set up to take reports of people still unaccounted for had over 50,000 listed as of midday on Friday. The UN’s aid chief gave a similar tally.
Foreign rescue teams and aid began arriving on Friday, as desperate Venezuelans and a growing number of foreign volunteers raced to find survivors trapped under rubble.
Rodriguez said 871 international rescue workers were in the country on Friday afternoon. Countries sending crews include Mexico, El Salvador and Spain.
The U.S. Geological Survey has predicted high potential for more than 10,000 deaths, which would place the quakes among the deadliest earthquakes in Latin America in the last century.
