La Guaira / Anadolu

The Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) delivered two trucks loaded with shelter supplies and basic living necessities to the Venezuelan city of La Guaira, the hardest hit by the earthquake that struck the country on June 24.

The humanitarian aid includes sleeping bags, tents, kitchen equipment, and portable stoves, and was delivered on Thursday to officials of La Guaira state at the José María Vargas Stadium, where humanitarian aid was collected, according to an Anadolu correspondent.

The handover ceremony was attended by Turkish Ambassador to Caracas Naci Aydan Karamanoglu, La Guaira state Governor José Alejandro Terán, and TIKA's coordinator in Bogotá, Ahmet Faruk Müftüoğlu.

In his speech, Ambassador Karamanoglu noted that TIKA is providing the third batch of aid following the earthquake.

He affirmed the continuation of humanitarian aid, stating that two planes carrying humanitarian aid will arrive from Turkey to Venezuela on July 12.

TIKA had recently provided search and rescue equipment, emergency relief materials, food packages, and personal hygiene supplies for those in need in La Guaira.

On June 24, a double earthquake struck Venezuela, the first with a magnitude of 7.2 and the second with a magnitude of 7.5 on the Richter scale, leaving 3,899 dead and 16,740 injured, according to the latest official figures.

The United Nations Development Programme announced on June 26 that the direct material damage cost is estimated at around $6.7 billion.

Search and rescue operations continue in the country, amid fears that the death toll and number of injured will continue to rise.