An 'incalculable' number of corpses are in Venezuela's earthquake zone. People feel abandoned

Survivors of the recent earthquakes in Venezuela are recounting harrowing experiences of being trapped beneath rubble, with limited access to aid and medical care. Josmer Becerra described the terrifying moments he and his girlfriend were pinned down by debris in their apartment building in Caraballeda, a coastal town devastated by the tremors. He managed to dig a hole for his girlfriend to breathe and then freed himself to rescue her.

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I got very nervous and started digging with my bare hands to get her air so she could breathe.

Becerra spent seven hours trapped in darkness, using a small hammer and his phone's flashlight to chip away at the wreckage. Both sustained injuries and are now recovering in a Caracas hospital, separated by beds. Becerra suffered a chest injury from a steel beam and wounds on his leg and ankle.

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I have a hole in my chest where I was hurt with a steel beam and in my left leg I have two wounds that need attention.

The earthquakes have severely impacted Venezuela's already strained health system. Thirty-eight hospitals across the country suffered damage or structural compromise. Hospital Perez de Leon in Caracas is receiving a large influx of injured survivors, but Director Carlos Garcia reports that medical supplies, including painkillers, IV solutions, and surgical equipment, are running low. Garcia described the situation as an unprecedented health emergency for which the system was unprepared.

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I never thought in my life I'd have to live through a moment like this. I guess as time moves on, we will learn how to deal with this.

Near Caracas, the city of Catia La Mar is uninhabitable, with electricity and gas cut off and phone service disrupted for days. Handwritten messages posted on buildings indicate the communication breakdown. The scale of the disaster, with thousands injured and tens of thousands unaccounted for, has left many residents feeling abandoned amidst the ongoing crisis.

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It was something that we are not prepared for really because everything happened in seconds, minutes.