Double earthquakes strike La Guaira and overwhelm local hospitals

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Two earthquakes of magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 hit La Guaira state, Venezuela, causing widespread destruction, scores of collapsed buildings and more than 2,600 deaths, according to official figures. Hospitals were overwhelmed within hours and more than 12,600 people were injured, prompting volunteers and medical teams to set up makeshift clinics in sites such as a McDonald's and a bus terminal where thousands have received care. Medical teams report diarrheal and dysentery cases and the UN warns that overcrowded shelters increase the risk of epidemics, while emergency responders continue search, rescue and basic treatment operations.

More than 2,600 people have died in the earthquakes.