Venezuelan teams conducting rescue operations in the field—concentrated primarily in La Guaira, Chacao, and Caracas's Libertador Municipality—are being supported by the deployment of 861 highly specialized international rescuers. Photo: EFE.
Parliament President Jorge Rodríguez thanked volunteers, rescue teams, and state security forces for their efforts to save lives following the earthquakes that struck Venezuela.
The report on La Guaira state, presented this Friday by National Assembly President Jorge Rodríguez, indicates that 243 people were rescued from disaster zones in the coastal region following the earthquakes that occurred in Venezuela last Wednesday, June 24. “Every person rescued is a miracle that restores our hope,” the lawmaker stated.
“I want to thank the thousands of volunteers, as well as the thousands upon thousands of personnel from rescue teams (including workers from other states), our Bolivarian National Armed Forces (FANB), police forces, state governments, and the municipal governments of Chacao, Caracas, and La Guaira, for their tireless efforts to save lives and assist the thousands upon thousands of people affected by the tragedy of the earthquakes,” added the president of the Venezuelan Parliament.
According to Jorge Rodríguez, field rescue operations—concentrated primarily in La Guaira, Chacao, and Caracas’s Libertador municipality—are also being supported by the deployment of 861 highly specialized international rescuers who have arrived in Venezuelan territory to assist in these efforts.
The international force accompanying the Venezuelan rescue teams includes 272 specialists from Mexico, 115 from El Salvador, 328 from the United States, 90 from Switzerland, 63 from Colombia, 53 from Ecuador, 40 from Spain, 34 from Chile, 13 from Panama, and 11 from the Dominican Republic. Joining this foreign contingent is a special United Nations rescue team.
Rodríguez highlighted that these professionals specialize in rescuing people in natural disaster scenarios. He emphasized that this personnel is specifically trained to navigate obstacles, debris, and walls in order to reach lives that need saving.
Regarding the specific relief efforts in La Guaira, Rodríguez reported that a total of 69,500 families have been assisted and 2,600 tons of food successfully distributed to those affected in the region to ensure immediate sustenance.
In terms of the overall impact of the tragedy, the official figures report 920 deaths, 3,360 injuries, 172 people still trapped under structures, and 3,007 people left homeless or displaced.
Regarding damaged infrastructure, material damage has been recorded in 1,423 structures, comprising 1,002 miscellaneous buildings, 383 residential buildings, 25 shopping centers, and 13 hospitals.
The President of the National Assembly urged the Venezuelan people to remain calm and to rely solely on official reports. He denounced attempts by malicious actors to fabricate baseless stories and spread fake news from the very onset of the emergency.
“Yesterday, they concocted the story of a supposed tsunami—a fake tsunami. Even though they knew it was a lie, they caused significant delays in the rescue of trapped individuals and triggered a mass exodus of people who were already enduring immense suffering given the current circumstances. They piled despair upon despair,” he said.
He called on the public to ignore rumors, however realistic they might appear. “They even showed videos from a beach in Sucre state—a place where the water naturally recedes. There is no tsunami alert whatsoever. Do not pay attention to falsehoods and lies,” he stated.
The magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 earthquakes on Wednesday triggered an emergency in both the coastal state of La Guaira and other regions of Venezuela. The initial quake was recorded at 6:04 p.m. local time, and the main shock—measuring magnitude 7.5—occurred just 39 seconds later.
Because these geological events took place at a shallow depth of 13.2 kilometers, their destructive force severely impacted the city of Caracas and the state of La Guaira—which was immediately declared a disaster zone—while damage was also reported in Aragua, Carabobo, and other parts of Venezuela.
(Telesur)
