Quake Toll Rises to 59 Dead, 322 Injured

The toll in a magnitude-6.9 quake that hit the eastern region rose to at least 59 dead and 322 injured, officials said. In Cariaco, about 245 miles east of the capital, Caracas, rescue workers at a school demolished in the earthquake curtailed their search for survivors. At least 40 people died there. In Cumana, about 45 miles west of Cariaco, rescuers used jackhammers and shovels to dig escape paths for survivors pinned under a caved-in building. The temblor had initially been measured at magnitude 5.5.