Venezuela went through one of the strongest seismic nights in the past century. On Tuesday evening, around 18:04 local time, the country was shaken by two devastating earthquakes one after another - the first with a magnitude of 7.2, and just 39 seconds later a second one of 7.5. The epicenters were in the Yaracuy region, west of Caracas, at shallow depths of 22 and around 10 kilometers, which makes the impact at the surface even stronger.

The earthquakes struck right on a national holiday, when Venezuela marks the 1821 Battle of Carabobo. In Caracas and the surrounding area buildings collapsed, especially in the Chacao district, where at least two structures were completely brought down, and rescuers pulled out 18 people. Over 500 rescuers have been deployed in the field, the fuel supply to the capital was cut off, and internet outages have also been reported.

The exact number of victims has not yet been confirmed. The US Geological Survey issued a serious warning through its assessment model - there's a real risk that the death toll could be very high, which means the rescue operation in the coming hours is of vital importance. Estimates like these aren't final figures, but a call to mobilize everything available before it's too late.

Interim President Delcy Rodríguez declared a state of emergency to mobilize all resources and people, while the US said it stands ready to help immediately. In moments like these, political divisions usually fall into the background - when houses are collapsing, nobody asks who's in power, but how fast help will arrive.

The Balkans knows the language of earthquakes better than most. Skopje in 1963, Zagreb and Petrinja recently - the region remembers how fast a city can be turned into rubble and how slowly it rises again afterward. That's why the news from Caracas isn't distant: it's a reminder that before the force of the earth we are all equal, and that the only thing that matters in the first hours is solidarity, not arithmetic.