CARACAS/LA GUAIRA/MORÓN, June 26 (Reuters) – Rescue teams worked throughout the night to save hundreds of Venezuelans trapped under the rubble and locate thousands more missing after two of the biggest earthquakes in Latin America’s modern history devastated areas in and around the capital Caracas.
The government reported that 235 dead were taken to medical centers, but did not provide a total estimate of the number of victims of the 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude tremors that struck about 160 km west of Caracas on Wednesday.
A website created to track missing people and released by opposition leaders in the politically polarized country listed more than 49,600 people as missing, while the United States Geological Survey predicted more than 10,000 deaths.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Spain reported that three of its citizens died, four were trapped under the rubble and another 99 remained missing.
As foreign rescue teams arrived, firefighters, soldiers and distressed citizens searched destroyed buildings, some using their bare hands and torches in places where power was out.
“He is under the slabs and there is no machinery to rescue him,” said Yamileth Jimenez of her 19-year-old son, trapped in the rubble of the seven-story apartment building where they lived in the coastal town of La Guaira, on the outskirts of Caracas.
Thousands are homeless in a country already weakened by decades of economic and political turbulence that has impoverished the population, caused an exodus of millions of people and deteriorated infrastructure and basic services.
Many live in precarious hillside slums called “barrios.”
“My building is uninhabitable and now I have nothing left. It’s just me and my son, and I have no family in the country,” said Suhayl Sarquiz, 50, who lost his job a few months ago.
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“It’s a tragedy,” said Beatriz Rodríguez, 60, whose nephew had his legs amputated after being crushed by the earthquakes. Another nephew died.
SLEEPING ON THE STREETS
The government confirmed 250 buildings were damaged or destroyed. At least eight hospitals, the Venezuelan Red Cross and the French embassy were among the buildings that were reportedly seriously damaged.
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Nearly 7 million people may have been affected, said the UN migration body, which was providing emergency shelter and other relief supplies.
La Guaira, the coastal state neighboring Caracas and home to the country’s main airport, was among the hardest hit areas. A stream of volunteers followed the Caracas-La Guaira highway carrying water, food and medicine.
“We lost everything,” said Pedro Pérez, 64, owner of an upholstery workshop who said he lost both his home and his business and is sleeping on the street with his wife and children.
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“We hope help arrives soon.”
Near the epicenter, in Morón, a coastal town in the state of Carabobo, houses collapsed and residents were left without water or electricity. Families rescued what they could, including mattresses, televisions and washing machines.
Nations around the world have pledged support, including some that have opposed Venezuela during decades of international isolation, political repression and economic deterioration under the ruling Socialist Party.
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Venezuela’s interim president Delcy Rodríguez, who took office when the US detained her ally and former leader Nicolás Maduro in January, thanked both US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin for their efforts.
