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Venezuelan woman, 69, rescued after 4 days under rubble, asks for Coca-Cola
🇵🇾 Paraguay /Disasters & Emergencies

Venezuelan woman, 69, rescued after 4 days under rubble, asks for Coca-Cola

From ABC Color · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News From a news agency Outcome reported
  • Marlene Santana, 69, was rescued after being trapped for nearly four days under the rubble of her collapsed home following two earthquakes in Venezuela.
  • She recalled hearing a dog, likely a rescue animal, and rescuers from El Salvador who encouraged her to crawl out despite her injuries.
  • Santana is recovering in a hospital but is concerned about the whereabouts of her daughter, husband, and sister who were also in the house.

A 69-year-old Venezuelan woman has been rescued after nearly four days trapped under the rubble of her home, which collapsed during two recent earthquakes. Marlene Santana was freed after a rescue team from El Salvador located her.

I put my little head against the wall and said: My God, it seems like everything in the Playa Grande urbanization is lost here because there is too much silence.

— Marlene SantanaSantana describes her thoughts while trapped under the rubble.

Santana recounted the terrifying experience, describing how she was trapped in a small space and could only feel her surroundings. She recalled hearing a dog, which she believes was a rescue animal, and the voices of the Salvadoran rescuers. "When I raised my hand and touched, it was a very small space. I touched the sides. I don't know if it was wall or wood. I couldn't make it out because we had no light, we had nothing," she told EFE.

When I raised my hand and touched, it was a very small space. I touched the sides. I don't know if it was wall or wood. I couldn't make it out because we had no light, we had nothing.

— Marlene SantanaSantana recalls the conditions while trapped.

The rescue was arduous. Santana's back was injured, making it impossible for her to crawl as the rescuers initially suggested. "I told them: I can't anymore, because I'm destroyed from below, my back. I can't. They told me: 'Mrs. Marlene, make one more sacrifice,'" she said. After being given two minutes to gather her strength, she managed to move enough to be pulled out.

I felt a dog. It surprises me because I didn't have a dog in my house. It barked. I found Bukele's personnel. They told me they were supporting me.

— Marlene SantanaSantana describes hearing a rescue dog and finding international help.

Upon her rescue, Santana's first request was for a Coca-Cola, a detail noted by El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele. While she is recovering in a public hospital, her immediate concern is the fate of her family members who were also in the house. "My daughter lived on the second floor. I don't know anything about her. I don't know anything about my husband. I don't know anything about my sister," she added.

I told them: I can't anymore, because I'm destroyed from below, my back. I can't. They told me: 'Mrs. Marlene, make one more sacrifice.'

— Marlene SantanaSantana recounts the exchange with rescuers about her inability to crawl.
DistantNews Editorial

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

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