A supporter holds up a sign for the Venezuela ahead of the World Cup Group H soccer match between Cape Verde and Saudi Arabia in Houston, June 26. AP-Yonhap
LA GUAIRA/CARACAS — Desperate Venezuelans and rescue teams raced to find survivors on Friday as the death toll from twin earthquakes rose above 900 with foreign rescue teams and aid only beginning to reach devastated areas nearly two days after the quakes. The government said 172 people remained trapped, 920 were dead and 3,360 injuredwhile a website listed more than 50,000 people reported missing.
Frustration mounted over scarce equipment and uneven state support for the rescue effort after the magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 quakes devastated parts of Caracas and surrounding areas on Wednesday evening.
A U.N. report estimated direct damage at about $6.7 billion, while reinsurance broker Guy Carpenter said the gap between economic and insured losses was likely to be "quite large.”
Moron, a town near the epicenter, was still without electricity, the local fire chief told Reuters.
