Venezuela was plunged into chaos on Saturday as armed supporters of captured Nicolas Maduro flooded the streets, sparking riots, shuttering transport networks and forcing terrified residents to barricade themselves inside their homes.

Gun-toting loyalists of the former strongman surged through cities including Caracas and Valencia, demanding his return after an overnight US military operation led to his arrest. 

Ordinary citizens described scenes of fear, shortages and total paralysis as the country teetered on the brink of renewed unrest.

'The nightmare isn't over yet. The figurehead is gone. But his supporters are still here,' a 70-year-old man living in Valencia told The New York Post, speaking anonymously out of fear of reprisal.

The resident said Venezuelan media had gone largely silent, leaving people scrambling for scraps of information as armed groups roamed the streets.

In Valencia, he said, the roads were 'absolutely dead' apart from Maduro loyalists, with residents only venturing out briefly to queue for dwindling food supplies.

'People are shopping as if the world were ending tomorrow. There is still fear because it's a military dictatorship that acts very harshly against any opposition,' he said.

Maduro's supporters pictured burning the US flag in protest of his capture by American forces 

Riot police prevent protesters from reaching the US embassy during a demonstration against the United States government for the detention of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores 

Riot police prevent protesters from reaching the US embassy during a demonstration

Riot police prevent protesters from reaching the US embassy during a demonstration against the United States government for the detention of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has been seen walking down a hallway in an official building in Manhattan, almost 24 hours after he was seized by US troops, as shown above 

'There are still armed groups roaming the cities; we are all worried they will come to steal food, supplies, and intimidate us.' 

In Caracas, scenes were even more dramatic. Supporters known as Chavistas - followers of Maduro's late mentor Hugo Chávez - were seen storming through areas reduced to rubble by overnight airstrikes.

'We want Maduro!' protesters shouted as smoke rose from bombed-out buildings in the capital.

Gas stations across the city were shut down, while metro services and buses were suspended. 

Most supermarkets closed their doors, leaving long lines snaking around the few that remained open. 

According to Spanish news agency EFE, one store was allowing only a single customer inside at a time to prevent a stampede.