The president of Venezuela’s National Assembly has warned time is running out to rescue survivors trapped under the rubble.

The death toll from the earthquakes has risen to at least 1,450 people, with 3,150 injured and 12,721 others displaced, Jorge Rodríguez said yesterday in a televised address.

“We are in critical hours, in crucial hours to continue rescuing lives and to build camps where those people who have lost their homes, or who cannot return, for whatever reason, to their residences can stay,” Rodríguez said.

More search and rescue teams are arriving in Venezuela five days after the powerful 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude quakes struck within a minute of each other on Wednesday evening, flattening buildings in the north of the country.

The second quake was one of the strongest tremors to hit Venezuela in a century. At least 68,900 people have been reported unaccounted for by their families.

Experts say the first 72 hours after natural disasters define the narrow window for rescuing the living. After that the search usually becomes one of recovering bodies.

Venezuela’s acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, says power has been restored to La Guaira, a port city near the country’s main international airport badly affected by the earthquakes.

But there is a severe shortage of heavy machinery needed to rescue survivors and state manpower has been lacking, meaning the government is reliant on international aid for assistance.