Quake-Hit Venezuela Faces Health Threats as Survivors Crowd Shelters

Venezuela faces mounting public-health risks after deadly earthquakes left tens of thousands of survivors crowded into shelters, the South China Morning Post reported. The Americas branch of the World Health Organization warned that disease outbreaks, poor sanitation, a lack of clean water and disruptions to basic medical care could pose the greatest dangers to those displaced.

The country has appealed for outside help. Venezuela's ambassador to Japan asked Tokyo for continued support, The Japan Times reported, with the envoy saying no country understands post-earthquake recovery better than Japan. The disaster has struck an economy already under strain and reliant on its oil sector.

For a major crude producer, a natural disaster is also an economic and political event. Damage to infrastructure, pressure on a fragile government and a scramble for foreign aid can all disrupt output and shift a country's diplomatic alignments, which is how an earthquake in one oil state affects commodity supply and regional politics.