Stockpiling not partying is the priority for Venezuelans who say they fear crackdowns by the regime the US left in place

There was a whirlwind of emotions on the streets of Caracas on Sunday, 24 hours after the first-ever large-scale US attack on South American soil and the extraordinary snaring of Venezuela’s president, Nicolás Maduro.

“Uncertainty,” said Griselda Guzmán, a 68-year-old pensioner, fighting back tears as she lined up outside a grocery store with her husband to stock up on supplies in case the coming days brought yet more drama.

Washington keeping 15,000-strong military presence in Caribbean in case interim president hinders US objectives

The prospect of the United States seizing direct control of Venezuela appeared to recede on Sunday after the shocking ousting of president Nicolás Maduro – but US officials warned they might make a fresh military intervention if interim president, Delcy Rodríguez, did not accommodate their demands.

Speaking to reporters late Sunday, Donald Trump also raised the possibility of military action in Colombia.

Some suspected the attacks on Venezuela were coming, but the shock was still real and no one knows what will happen next

• US strikes on Venezuela – live updates

• Why has US attacked Venezuela and captured president?

As they were jolted from their beds just before 2am on Saturday, many Caracas residents sought an innocent explanation for the racket that had interrupted their sleep: an exploding air conditioning unit, a tropical thunderstorm, an earthquake. Or perhaps a festive display of pyrotechnics over Venezuela’s mountain-flanked capital.

“I thought it might be fireworks,” Carlos Hurtado, a resident of the 23 de Enero housing estate on the city’s west side, recalled of the moment he was woken by a mysterious sequence of rumblings and explosions.

US president lauds ‘brilliant operation’ on social media as attorney general says couple will face criminal charges

• US attacks Venezuela – live updates

• What we know so far about the attack

• Watch: Aircraft fly low over Caracas as explosions hit city

Donald Trump has said the US “captured” Venezuela’s president, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, Cilia Flores, and flew them out of the South American country during a pre-dawn assault on Caracas and the surrounding region.

“It was a brilliant operation, actually,” the US president told the New York Times after witnesses in Venezuela reported a series of explosions. “A lot of good planning and [a] lot of great, great troops and great people.”