A preliminary NASA assessment estimates that the double earthquake that hit Venezuela last week may have damaged or destroyed some 58,870 buildings throughout the affected region.
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29/06/2026
by
Lusa
A estimate was produced from radar data from Sentinel-1 satellite, the European Earth observation program Copernicus, and results from an experimental analysis conducted a few days after the catastrophe.
NASA noted that the result “has not yet been validated” and should be viewed as a preliminary assessment.
According to the agency, the Disaster Response Coordination System has been activated to support authorities and will continue to disseminate maps and other information products as new data is processed.
The experts compared two radar images obtained after earthquakes on June 24 and 25 with a set of reference images captured by Sentinel-1 over the last year.
The first covers the western zone near the epicenter, near San Felipe and Yumare, while the second covers the metropolitan area of Caracas, including Petare and Antimano.
The European Space Agency (ESA) is also using Sentinel-1 data to draw up maps of earthquake-related terrain deformation.
An interferogram obtained by comparing images collected before and after the disaster reveals changes in the soil from Caracas to Puerto Cabello, about 210 kilometers west of the Venezuelan capital, using instruments capable of detecting deformations with millimetric accuracy.
Venezuela was hit last Wednesday by two strong earthquakes, of magnitudes 7.2 and 7.5, with epicenter near San Felipe and Yumare, in the north center of the country.
The earthquakes caused strong destruction along the central coast and in the metropolitan area of Caracas, causing at least 1,450 deaths and 3,150 injuries, according to the latest official balance.
Among the dead, there are at least 56 Portuguese and Portuguese descendants, and another 91 are missing or undisputed.
According to the UN, over 50,000 people are missing.
Dozens of buildings collapsed or were severely damaged in the capital Caracas and La Guaira, one of the most affected.
Several countries, including Portugal and other states of the European Union, have sent search and rescue teams to Venezuela.
The base of operations of the Portuguese mission to respond to earthquakes is based in Catia la Mar, in La Guaira, a zone of great concentration of Portuguese and Portuguese descents.