The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs announced that it is “fully mobilized” to support the people of Venezuela following the earthquakes that shook the country on Wednesday, and noted that it is already coordinating a rapid deployment of urban search and rescue teams “from across the international community.”

In addition, the office has sent a rapid response team to reinforce its staff on the ground, United Nations humanitarian coordinator Tom Fletcher said in a statement this Thursday.

The UN humanitarian chief added that he has spoken with the president in charge of Venezuela, Delcy Rodríguez, to “urgently evaluate what the needs are.”

“The coming days will require a huge collective effort to support the Government-led response and help affected communities,” said Fletcher, who also called for maintaining international support for humanitarian organizations responding on the ground.

The humanitarian coordinator indicated that he is in permanent contact with his team in Caracas, headed by Gianluca Rampolla, to guarantee an effective response.

Fletcher recalled that before the earthquakes, almost eight million people in Venezuela needed humanitarian assistance, so the catastrophe "threatens to aggravate already existing vulnerabilities."

With information from EFE.