12-Year-Old Girl Survives 30+ Hours in Venezuelan Earthquake Rubble Fueled by Ketchup and Cheese

A 12-year-old Venezuelan girl, Fabiana Blanco, miraculously survived for more than 30 hours trapped beneath the rubble of her collapsed apartment building following two powerful earthquakes that struck the country on June 24. The magnitude 7.5 quake was one of the strongest to hit the region in a century.

Blanco was alone in her ten-story building when it crumbled. While trapped in darkness, she managed to move debris to free her leg and sustained herself with a bottle of ketchup and some grated cheese she found. She initially heard rescuers but could not respond due to her location deep within the wreckage.

Her mother, who had been working as a caregiver upstairs, was also trapped but was rescued after a few hours. Upon her rescue, she informed rescuers that her daughter might still be alive. Later, when rescuers called out, Blanco heard them and responded, guiding them to her location. After 32 hours, rescuers created a tunnel through the debris to pull her out. She suffered a broken leg, scratches, and bruises but otherwise escaped serious injury. The earthquakes have resulted in over 3,500 fatalities and left tens of thousands missing.

“

I got scratches and wounds, but I found a bottle of ketchup and grated cheese. They kept me conscious.