Mother Hears Son Crying Under Venezuela Earthquake
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- Andreina Valerio heard her almost-two-year-old son Santiago crying beneath the rubble of her in-laws' collapsed apartment block in La Guaira, where he was trapped along with his father Ramsés Mendoza, grandparents, great-grandparents, and aunt.
- Two devastating earthquakes levelled hundreds of buildings across Venezuela, killing at least 1,430 people and injuring 3,238, with over 1,400 structures affected in La Guaira alone and tens of thousands still reported missing.
- Rescue teams from El Salvador and Spain arrived at the collapsed building on Saturday but were unable to enter, while Venezuelan officials said teams from 10 nations were expected in La Guaira state.
- Jorge Rodríguez, president of Venezuela's National Assembly, declared the quakes "the most disastrous event this republic has suffered in the last 123 years."
- Interim President Delcy Rodríguez said 14,000 personnel were sent to La Guaira, which she said has been "militarised," though families reported only one small tractor on the streets initially as heavy machinery struggled to arrive via a broken road.
- A doctor at a Caracas hospital said at least 600 injured people had been brought in, most with fractures and some suffering panic attacks, while ambulances were unable to enter La Guaira because a collapsed bridge had gridlocked traffic and injured people were driven out on the backs of motorbikes.
- Relatives are camping in the streets around damaged buildings, refusing to leave because they fear the government will make roads and their collapsed homes inaccessible.
Why it matters: Venezuela's interim government has deployed 14,000 personnel and "militarised" La Guaira, yet families reported only one tractor on the streets initially, ambulances blocked by a collapsed bridge, and bodies being carried out by volunteers without specialised equipment — suggesting the scale of destruction (1,430 dead, tens of thousands missing, 1,400+ buildings damaged) has outpaced the state's capacity to respond despite rescue teams being requested from 10 nations.
