Crumbling edifice

Two earthquakes that rocked Venezuela on June 24 caused $19.6 billion in direct physical damage, but the cost of rebuilding could be twice that much or more, the World Bank said in an early assessment released on July 23.

The 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude quakes killed about 5,000 people, according to the government, destroying residential buildings, infrastructure and nonresidential buildings in the northern areas of the country, including the capital Caracas.

The government estimates that nearly 17,000 people were injured and nearly 18,000 remain homeless. The disaster, the country's deadliest earthquake since 1812, came at a time when socioeconomic conditions were already precarious, with a poverty rate of over 76 percent.