Residents recall harrowing moments when US bombs hit Venezuelan port city

Shell-shocked residents in a northern Venezuelan port city which was targeted by the U.S. military have recounted the terrifying moments when the bombings hit their local community.

The U.S. military launched a series of attacks against Venezuela early Saturday morning, capturing Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife before putting them in custody in New York.

Venezuela's interior ministry said on Wednesday that 100 people were killed in the attacks which have drawn widespread international condemnation and raised serious concerns worldwide.

Catia La Mar, a port city in the state of La Guaira to the north of the capital Caracas, was one of the places hit by the U.S. military strikes. Residents there have been left grappling with anxiety and fear since the overnight bombings took place, with many left traumatized by the ordeal.

"Where we were attacked, one of our buildings suffered severe damage. Eight of the 16 families were severely affected. There were people injured and one person dead. Well, that's an experience I wouldn't wish on anyone. We were sleeping and we suddenly felt something -- first noises, then whooshing sounds, and then explosions. We thought the buildings were going to fall onto us," said a local resident.

Others described the sense of panic as they were awoken during the night and said they ran for their lives.

"The moment the missile hit, I turned around in despair and what I saw was an orange sky. The whole building collapsed around us; we couldn't get out. We got up. We couldn't even see through the smoke. We grabbed the dogs, we got out through a small hole and we started calling for help," said a resident.

"It was a horrible thing. It was two in the morning, everyone was sleeping. We never expected any of this; it's truly a very sad thing. I am filled with rage because I feel helpless. Right now we all feel nervous, we can hardly sleep at night because every noise we hear, we feel like an explosion is coming," another resident said.

Residents recall harrowing moments when US bombs hit Venezuelan port city

Residents recall harrowing moments when US bombs hit Venezuelan port city

The Chinese naval hospital ship, Silk Road Ark, carried out a medical rescue drill in Atlantic waters during its Mission Harmony 2025, testing its capability to provide medical support during long-distance deployments.

The drill marked the vessel's first overseas medical-support exercise in unfamiliar waters in 2026, designed to simulate real-world emergency response scenarios far from home ports.

It brought together the hospital ship, a sea-based medical facility and shipborne helicopters in a coordinated rescue operation.

The exercise was conducted against a simulated backdrop of a commercial vessel in distress on the high seas with multiple casualties. After receiving the emergency signals, a shipborne helicopter immediately took off under an aerial evacuation plan, transferring simulated injured personnel to the triage area for rapid assessment and emergency treatment.

As part of the exercise, medical teams practiced a time-sensitive rescue approach, combining casualty transfer, triage and treatment to ensure prompt and accurate assessment of injuries under operational conditions.

"We followed the principle of providing treatment while transferring and carrying out triage and rescuing, ensuring that casualties are correctly assessed at the earliest time possible. If a patient is in a critical condition, we must carry out necessary emergency treatment in the triage area. Once vital signs are relatively stable, the patient is then transferred to an appropriate treatment unit," said Jiang Yingbo, a member of the Mission Harmony 2025.

Severely injured patients were transferred to intensive care units for further observation and treatment after surgery. A medical expert group then conducted timely consultations to formulate targeted treatment plans.

Under complex sea conditions in distant waters, the drill covered multiple training modules including maritime evacuation, triage, emergency treatment and surgery, strengthening the military medical ship's integrated emergency medical response, and enhancing the navy's far-sea medical support capability, according to the authorities.

Chinese navy hospital ship drills medical rescue in Atlantic waters