The toll of the earthquakes of magnitude 7.5 and 7.2 that shook northern Venezuela on Wednesday amounted to 920 deaths and 3,360 injuries this Saturday. Search efforts continue among collapsed buildings, while complaints grow about the slowness in the arrival of rescue teams.
Among the victims is the Italian Francesca Mannina, whose body was identified after she had been missing for two days. His partner was rescued alive the day before.
Criticism points to the initial response of the authorities. Opposition leaders, led by Juan Pablo Guanipa, denounced the lack of heavy machinery and specialized equipment to free trapped people, especially in La Guaira. “We have people alive under the rubble and we need heavy machinery,” said a resident of Catia La Mar in a video broadcast on the networks. Witnesses pointed out that for hours the inhabitants themselves dug with their hands.
Faced with the emergency, the United States deployed one of the largest international assistance operations. More than 250 rescuers — firefighters, doctors, engineers, urban search specialists and 18 trained dogs — were dispatched. The operation includes two military ships, aircraft and a humanitarian aid package for 150 million dollars. Major General Kevin Jarrard arrived in Caracas to coordinate logistics with the Simón Bolívar airport as the main center.
An Italian civil protection mission also arrived.
The health emergency is worsening in Caracas. Hospitals such as Pérez Carreño and Domingo Luciani are working at their limit after receiving hundreds of injured people from La Guaira. Doctors report shortages of supplies and depend on volunteers to maintain care.
The aftershocks continue. Funvisis reported this Saturday a 4.9 magnitude earthquake north of Maracay, also felt in Caracas, La Guaira, Miranda and Carabobo. Since the main earthquake, at least thirteen minor movements have been recorded.
In the midst of the crisis, teams from El Salvador rescued alive, after more than 50 hours, a 15-year-old teenager with her dog, trapped on the ninth floor of a collapsed building in Playa Grande. Hours earlier, the same rescuers saved another woman who had been under the rubble for two days.
Venezuelan sport suffered a loss: the Venezuelan Football Federation confirmed the death of midfielder Yimvert Berroterán, 18, a member of the U-20 team and the Central University of Venezuela, who had remained missing since the collapse of several buildings in La Guaira.
While the search efforts continue, the government of Interim President Delcy Rodríguez restricted access to the most affected areas. The opposition maintains that this measure hinders the arrival of aid and humanitarian work.
