By
July 1, 2026 / 5:43 PM EDT
/ CBS News
Add CBS News on Google
About 2,000 U.S. service members are supporting relief efforts in Venezuela after last week's devastating earthquakes, according to the head of U.S. military's Southern Command. "The U.S. military, the Department of War, has roughly 2,000 teammates in the area on land, air and sea around Venezuela," Gen. Francis Donovan said in a briefing Wednesday. "They are working hard daily to help in the search and rescue efforts, to help in the recovery efforts to deliver needed supplies."Donovan told reporters that the focus right now is looking for survivors — Wednesday marked the seventh day since the two earthquakes. "In these situations, you have anywhere from 3 to 7 days that you have to respond to hopefully recover people that are still living and maybe injured in the rubble," Donovan said. Venezuela's government on Wednesday said over 2,000 people have died as a result of the earthquakes, and over 10,000 were injured. Shortly after the 7.2- and 7.5-magnitude earthquakes, the U.S. military helped fly in about 310 specialists from urban search and rescue teams who are now on the ground, according to John Barrett, the chargé d'affaires for the U.S. Embassy in Caracas. He said they have rescued five survivors, including a mother and her toddler. After the U.S. military conducted an overnight raid in January to capture Venezuela's President Nicolás Maduro, the Trump administration outlined a three-phase plan for Venezuela that consisted of stabilization, economic recovery and transition with free and fair elections.
