Efforts to Rescue Venezuela Quake Victims Grow More Desperate

[TITLE:Venezuela Earthquake Rescue Efforts Enter Desperate Phase as Death Toll Exceeds 1,700]

Rescuers pulled a 21-year-old man from the rubble of a collapsed building in La Guaira on Monday, the hardest-hit state in northern Venezuela, where he had been trapped for 106 hours following last week’s earthquakes. President Delcy Rodríguez shared video of the 43-hour rescue operation on social media, showing workers hoisting Aaron Levi Cantillo onto a stretcher as onlookers cheered.

The search for survivors in northern Venezuela grew increasingly desperate Monday, despite hopes fuelled by the discovery of seven people alive over the weekend—beyond the critical 72-hour window for most rescues. The death toll from Wednesday’s 7.2- and 7.5-magnitude earthquakes rose to 1,719 people, with over 5,000 injured and 15,800 displaced, according to the Venezuelan government. Official figures are likely underreported, as doctors in La Guaira process approximately 750 bodies daily.

United Nations officials, including Venezuela coordinator Gianluca Rampolla, warned that 10,000 body bags had been procured given the scale of damage, though no definitive count of the missing exists. Over 600 aftershocks have shook the region since the quakes, including a 4.6-magnitude event Monday that prompted Caracas subway inspections.

Twenty-seven countries have deployed more than 2,000 rescuers and 160 search dogs. The government announced two new commissions to oversee temporary shelters and assess infrastructure safety, particularly addressing buildings constructed with inadequate steel reinforcement. Satellite analysis estimated 58,870 structures damaged or destroyed—far exceeding the official count of 855 buildings.

Experts criticized the catastrophic building failures, with University College London’s Ilan Kelman stating that “not a single building should have collapsed.” The response faces challenges including traffic disruptions, lack of heavy machinery, and an overstretched healthcare system.

In Caracas, 150 unidentified bodies remained at the morgue, with officials considering mass graves as the death toll rises. At a Caracas school sheltering 1,200 people—including 300 children—volunteers provide food, medical care, and education. “Many completely lost their homes or live in cracked buildings unfit for habitation,” said school director Enilba Galindo.

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