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Hope fades for earthquake survivors in Venezuela; thousands missing, nearly 2,300 dead
🇲🇽 Mexico /Disasters & Emergencies

Hope fades for earthquake survivors in Venezuela; thousands missing, nearly 2,300 dead

From El Universal · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • Hope dwindles for finding earthquake survivors in Venezuela a week after devastating tremors, with nearly 2,300 dead and thousands missing.
  • National mourning has been declared as rescue efforts shift focus from active searching to recovery.
  • Survivors face urgent needs for aid, including food and shelter, as attention turns to the thousands displaced by the disaster.

The search for survivors is nearing its end in Venezuela, one week after powerful earthquakes left nearly 2,300 people dead and thousands missing. Despair is setting in among families, while the urgency for aid for the affected population grows.

Interim President Delcy Rodríguez declared seven days of national mourning "in tribute" to the victims. The fruitless search efforts have given way to silence in areas like Catia La Mar, a coastal town in La Guaira state, which bore the brunt of the 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude earthquakes on June 24.

Hundreds of collapsed buildings are now marked with a "D" for "deceased," indicating they have been inspected by rescuers according to international disaster nomenclature. Official figures report at least 2,295 deaths, while the UN estimates around 50,000 people are missing. "Venezuela's soul is torn," Rodríguez stated on Telegram. Although the government has not directly addressed the missing, it reported that around 30,000 people were in La Guaira during the earthquakes; 6,461 were rescued, and over 13,000 left with help from relatives and friends. The fate of the rest remains unknown.

"I ask you to tell the truth about the death toll... it doesn't matter how they are, but that you bring them out so we can at least have their bodies," pleaded Gladys Barrios, 76, to AFP. Despite diminishing possibilities, some cling to hope, recalling the miraculous rescue of a three-year-old boy found alive under rubble by Jordanian rescuers on Tuesday.

Social media remains flooded with photos of missing children, the elderly, and couples, along with their details and contact numbers. However, the focus is gradually shifting towards the thousands left homeless, who face insufficient food supplies, according to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Many are sheltering in parking lots, sports fields, or makeshift outdoor camps.

No se pierde el tiempo en un lugar donde no se espera recuperar personas con vida

— Javier RodesJavier Rodes, coordinator of a Spanish rescue group, explained the shift in focus from active searching to recovery efforts.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by El Universal in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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