U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) continues to assist American relief efforts in Venezuela led by the State Department after last week’s deadly earthquakes.
Two magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 earthquakes struck Venezuela on Wednesday evening. At press time, the most up-to-date death toll disclosed by Venezuelan authorities lists at least 1,450 dead and 3,150 injured.
Immediately after the earthquakes, the United States deployed relief efforts on Venezuela led by the State Department, moving dozens of trained rescue workers and equipment to help find and rescue an untold number of individuals missing under the rubble of numerous collapsed buildings — most notably, in the northern state of La Guaira, the region most affected by the tragedy and declared a “disaster zone” by the Venezuelan socialist regime.
Hours later, U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Gen. Kevin J. Jarrard arrived in Caracas to coordinate relief support as the senior SOUTHCOM official on the ground.
Since then, U.S. Marines are working to support the State Department-led relief efforts in Venezuela. In a statement published on Sunday, SOUTHCOM detailed that as part of the United States’ relief efforts, it is deploying a Contingency Response Element (CRE) to assist the Venezuelan government and aviation authorities with airport surveys, assessments, and airfield management to safely restore air traffic and aviation operations in affected areas.
SOUTHCOM also detailed that about 130 U.S. Marine Corps personnel are slated to arrive at the Port of La Guaira to help reopen it after the earthquakes forced its closure. The reopening of the key port will allow the arrival of much needed supplies and equipment by sea, helping the heaviest hits areas of Venezuela.
“The United States stands with the Venezuelan people and has mobilized an unprecedented, large-scale response to support international earthquake relief efforts in the country,” SOUTHCOM wrote on a social media post. “The Department of War is supporting the Department of State-led U.S. response.”
In a video published by SOUTHCOM on another social media post, a Venezuelan national is heard thanking U.S. Marines arriving at a site to assist search and rescue operations.
Venezuela, after nearly three decades of socialist rule plundered the nation’s once vast wealth an mismanaged its entire infrastructure, was left ill-prepared to face with natural disasters of any kind, complicating the already tragic situation further. The Venezuelan socialist regime, presently led by “acting President” Delcy Rodriguez, has already found itself incapable of responding to the tragedy on its own.
As a result, the aid provided by the United States and several other countries has become highly crucial as search and rescue operations continue in the country.
As Breitbart News reported last week, The United States deployed its relief efforts efficiently and without the need of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), an agency that for years worked outside of the control of the State Department, presumably to distribute foreign aid.
President Donald Trump shut down USAID in 2025, folding its operations into the State Department, and leading into widespread outrage among celebrities. In reality, an investigation from the State Department revealed serious flaws in USAID that could have impeded the United States’ ongoing relief efforts in Venezuela.