CharityWatch announces a list of legitimate, efficient, and accountable charities involved in efforts to aid and assist victims of the earthquakes in Venezuela.
On June 24, 2026, northern Venezuela was devastated by a rare doublet earthquake sequence. A magnitude 7.2 foreshock struck near San Felipe in Yaracuy state at 6:04 p.m. local time, followed just 39 seconds later by a massive magnitude 7.5 mainshock. It is the country’s most powerful seismic event since 1900.
Acting President Delcy Rodríguez declared a national state of emergency as the shallow strike-slip quakes triggered widespread destruction. Entire blocks and high-rise concrete buildings collapsed in the capital of Caracas and the hard-hit coastal region of La Guaira. According to the latest news reports, the death toll has risen to more than 1,400 people, with more than 3,200 injured, as rescue crews continue searching for survivors beneath the rubble.
The long-term effects will not be known for many months. Venezuela requires an immediate and large-scale humanitarian aid response.
Those wishing to help can consider supporting one of the CharityWatch Top-Rated charities listed below. We also encourage donors to visit each charity’s website to learn more about its relief efforts and how it is responding to this devastating disaster.
The charities listed below are Top-Rated by CharityWatch for spending at least 75% of their cash budgets on programs; for maintaining fundraising efficiency of $25 or less to raise each $100 in cash donations; and for meeting CharityWatch’s governance & transparency benchmarks.
All Hands and Hearts has deployed a team to Venezuela, coordinating with partners, and has begun response operations, providing emergency relief.
CARE is working with their existing partners in Venezuela, who are already responding to the earthquake.
Catholic Relief Services is working through Caritas Venezuela and the local Church to quickly deliver emergency shelter, food, safe water, medical care and other critical relief to those affected.
Direct Relief & Direct Relief Foundation has an extensive history of medical support in South America and the Caribbean to provide regional medical support during emergencies and support health systems throughout the region.
Doctors Without Borders USA has teams that are currently in Caracas, Venezuela providing assistance.
International Medical Corps has deployed members of their in-country team to the affected region to assess needs, working in close collaboration with local officials and emergency responders.
International Rescue Committee is scaling up services to support survivors of the two deadly earthquakes that struck Venezuela on June 24th.
Project HOPE has four assessment teams actively working in the most impacted areas and they are mobilizing medical assistance following the powerful June 24 earthquakes in Venezuela.
Samaritan’s Purse has sent a Disaster Assistance Response Team, which will include some staff members from their Colombia country office.
Save the Children has released $1.5 million from the Children’s Emergency Fund and is working with local partners to provide healthcare, shelter, food, child protection and other lifesaving support.
United States Fund for UNICEF is providing emergency support for children and families after a pair of deadly earthquakes hit northern Venezuela.
World Central Kitchen has teams on the ground that began serving meals as quickly as possible to aid victims of the earthquakes.
The charities listed in this alert were Top-Rated by CharityWatch at the time of its publication. CharityWatch updates our ratings throughout the year. To see if a particular charity is currently Top-Rated, please click on its name to navigate to its CharityWatch profile page.
Scammers will exploit your feelings of empathy and compassion during times of crisis as a means of siphoning donations away from legitimate charities and into their own pockets.
Unscrupulous charities will sometimes use disasters as a money grab to raise funds for unrelated causes. CharityWatch does not add just any charity to our disaster alerts. We sort through the marketing fluff of charities to find out what specific aid is being provided to victims before adding an organization to our list. This list will be updated as new information becomes available.
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