04/07/2026 15:54 - Internacionales
On June 24, 2026, two earthquakes of magnitudes 7.2 and 7.5 struck the northern coast of Venezuela (a country located on the northern tip of South America), generating an incalculable humanitarian crisis. As of the latest reports, the official balance accounts for 2,595 deaths and 12,400 injured, while the UN estimates that between 50,000 and 70,000 people remain missing. However, amidst the devastation, stories of survival and solidarity shine brightly.
In the devastated streets of Caraballeda and La Guaira (the main port city serving the capital, Caracas), the absence of a swift government response has been replaced by the immense heart of the Venezuelan people and the international community. This is the case of Israel Rivas, a 24-year-old mechanic from San Felix (a city in eastern Venezuela), who traveled 12 hours by bus to join the rescue efforts. Rivas became the interpreter for the UK International Search and Rescue (UK ISAR) team, coming from Merseyside, West Midlands, and Wales.
If you need me, here I am, was the phrase with which Rivas introduced himself to the British firefighters. Teams from Brazil, Ecuador, Chile, El Salvador, and Peru are also working tirelessly, using tracking dogs and highly sensitive acoustic devices to detect signs of life under the rubble.
Hope is renewed with every rescue. A moving case was that of Hernan Gil, a 43-year-old security guard who was pulled alive from the collapsed basement of a shopping center after being trapped for 114 hours under the rubble.
To date, 13 people have been rescued alive, proving that the human spirit can overcome the worst adversities. Rescuers keep their faith; as Brazilian Captain Diego Assuncao notes, detecting breathing sounds under the rubble is enough to give us hope.
A few meters from Los Corales beach, grandparents and parents wait for news of their loved ones. Olivia Sandoval, 50, watches over her grandson Ronald (8) and his cousins Victoria (10) and Leonardo (8), trapped when the Residencia La Gabarra building collapsed. Olivia hands out traditional arepas (a popular South American cornmeal flatbread) to the rescuers while praying for a miracle, a symbol of Venezuelan resilience.
Where the government is absent, the people abound.
The acting president, Delcy Rodriguez, has defended the official management, assuring that 19,000 officials are working in the area, although citizens like Adolfo Guedes (who lost his 23-year-old daughter, Alexandra) express their indignation at the slowness in the arrival of state aid. The international community, for its part, continues to send logistical and human support, proving that in the face of tragedy, borders disappear.
International sources, such as The Guardian, describe the scene as a monumental challenge, but the joint work of volunteers like Israel Rivas and brigades from around the world ensures that the light of hope never goes out in La Guaira.
Alfredo S. Quiroga
