The stench of decomposing bodies spread through the streets of La Guaira as rescue brigades moved from searching for survivors to recovering remains. However, unexpected news restored spirits to the international and local teams.
The rescue of Hernán Alberto Gil Flores
Venezuelan and foreign officials celebrated the discovery alive of a 43-year-old security guard, trapped for almost eight days under the rubble of a shopping center. Television cameras captured the emotional moment when he was extracted and placed on a stretcher, while the crowd burst into applause.
Hernán survived thanks to an air pocket and the food and water that the rescuers sent him through the cracks. It far exceeded the critical threshold of 72 hours, when experts consider it most likely to find people alive.
The other side of tragedy
In other areas of the state of La Guaira, the most affected, the outlook was bleak. The port city of Catia La Mar saw officials moving around carrying body bags and stacking coffins. Equipment with seismic sensors was removed without detecting signs of life.
The government of the interim president, Delcy Rodríguez, reported at least 2,295 deaths and more than 11,000 injuries. His management has been criticized for its slowness and disorganization. Thousands of people sleep in shelters or outdoors, and doctors warn of a health crisis due to infections and untreated injuries.
Among the victims is Daniel Alejandro Núñez Ramírez, 28, deported from the United States hours before the earthquake. He had arrived on a flight with more than a hundred Venezuelans and was transferred to a hotel in La Guaira that his mother, Oswadeliz Núñez, described as a prison. Thirty minutes after a phone call, the building collapsed. His mother collected his ashes in a morgue.
“My son was not a criminal. Why do they treat people with no criminal record as criminals?” —Oswadeliz told The Associated Press.
Support from the United States
Washington supports Rodríguez and has allocated more than $300 million in assistance. John M. Barrett, US chargé d’affaires in Venezuela, assured that funds from Venezuelan oil production will be available for reconstruction. However, organizations such as the Washington Office on Latin American Affairs ask for transparency in the use of that money.
The government’s response remains under scrutiny, as the 180-day term of Rodríguez’s interim presidency expires.
