Nearly five days after two powerful earthquakes struck northern Venezuela, the official death toll has reached 1,450, and thousands of people remain unaccounted for.
Back-to-back magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 earthquakes hit the country on Wednesday, killing more than 1,400 people and causing widespread destruction in the capital, Caracas, and the adjoining coastal state of La Guaira, according to Al Jazeera. At least 774 buildings collapsed, 3,150 people were injured, and 12,721 were displaced, according to Jorge Rodriguez, president of Venezuela's National Assembly and brother of acting president Delcy Rodriguez.
Foreign rescue teams have concentrated their efforts in La Guaira, the hardest-hit state about 40 kilometers north of Caracas, where dozens of buildings crumbled into piles of sand and rubble. The United States announced plans to deploy warships, transport planes and helicopters and provide $150 million in aid. Brazil sent firefighters and risk assessment and telecommunications specialists along with medical supplies.
NPR reporter Eyder Peralta, who is in Caracas, visited the site of a collapsed 16-story building now lying in ruins. A rescue crew arrived but deemed it too dangerous to search. Several dozen family members were climbing through the rubble and digging through random areas in search of survivors. At times, the smell of death grew stronger, causing them to dig faster. Peralta reported that rescuers say the best chance to save people comes within the first three days, but families with missing loved ones continue to search regardless.
Interim President Delcy Rodriguez addressed the nation Sunday, saying "Rescue and recovery efforts are ongoing. Today, we have recovered people alive, and therefore, operations are not being suspended. We always maintain hope." She also announced that a presidential commission would determine the habitability of buildings, that schools would remain closed for one more week, and that electricity in La Guaira had been restored to 75 percent.
The government thanked civilian volunteers who ferried aid to La Guaira but later tightened access to the road, saying vehicle traffic was slowing the movement of emergency vehicles.
Venezuela has been dealing with deep political and economic crises for years. The government is currently headed by Rodriguez, following the abduction of her predecessor Nicolas Maduro by the US military in January.
Amid the devastation, rescuers have pulled survivors from the rubble days after the earthquakes struck, including a father and son recovered alive four days after the disaster, providing rare moments of hope during the ongoing recovery operation.
