Earthquakes in Venezuela expose a severely under‑resourced and unprepared healthcare system

Photo: U.S. Air Force Contingency Response Element Airmen, assigned to the 621st Contingency Response Wing, help offload a Samaritan’s Purse Emergency Field Hospital for earthquake victims at Simón Bolívar International Airport, Venezuela, June 29, 2026. […] Photo credit: U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Devin M. Rumbaugh via DVIDS. Public Domain. Article by Hermes Florez and Zeina Hannoush. The Conversation – July 9, 2026.

Twin earthquakes struck Venezuela on June 24, 2026, causing major damage in Caracas and a nearby coastal city, La Guaira. At the time of publication, 3,685 people have been declared dead, and more than 30,000 remain missing. Dr. Hermes Florez and Dr. Zeina Hannoush are physicians who trained in Venezuela, then immigrated to the United States, where they now teach medicine. In a joint interview they talked about the earthquake and its aftermath, global aid efforts and the need to reform Venezuela’s healthcare system. […]

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Related articles:

Organization warns of public health emergency in Venezuela after 38 hospitals damaged in earthquakes last month – CBS News

Video: As hospitals saturate, earthquakes lay bare frailty of Venezuela’s health system – France 24

Venezuela quake death toll passes 4,300 as scale of recovery effort looms large – The Guardian