Emergency responders trying to recover casualties in a collapsed building in Catia La Mar, La Guaira state, Venezuela. Photo: ANSA/EPA.
Caracas (OrinocoTribune.com)—On Monday, Venezuelan authorities released their weekly information bulletin following the catastrophic June 24 earthquakes, reporting that the death toll had risen to 6,125.
Last Friday, La Guaira Governor José Alejandro Terán reported that 1,338 people remained missing in the state, the area hardest hit by the earthquake.
The report, released through the Venezuela Reborn program, also stated that 6,462 people had been rescued and 60,992 had received hospital treatment.
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Reconstruction efforts
Regarding the reconstruction phase, authorities reported that 287 homes had been delivered to families affected by the earthquakes.
Officials have assessed 43,679 homes, of which 41,624 were found to have been affected. Of those inspected, 25,325 were classified as habitable, 9,866 were placed under restricted-use status, and 6,433 were considered high-risk structures.
The Venezuelan government also reported that 346,755 tons of debris had been collected, 16.51% of the estimated total.
Deportation flights from US resume
Also on Monday, the José Antonio Anzoátegui International Airport in Barcelona, Anzoátegui state, Venezuela, received flight 165 operated by US airline Global X. The flight arrived from Miami, Florida, USA, carrying 147 Venezuelan migrants deported from the US.
The Instagram account of Venezuela’s Vuelta a la Patria (Return to the Homeland) program reported that the group consisted of 132 men and 15 women. The returning Venezuelans were received by the head of the program, Melvin Maldonado, alongside Anzoátegui Governor Luis José Marcano and Barcelona Mayor Sugey Herrera.
Authorities deployed the usual security, health, and identification protocols at the Barcelona airport terminal. These procedures allowed the passengers to disembark in an orderly manner and begin the process of reuniting with their families.
More than 100 recently repatriated Venezuelan migrants staying at the Santuario Hotel in La Guaira were feared dead after the hotel collapsed during the June 24 earthquake. The disaster also severely affected the Simón Bolívar International Airport and disrupted the continuation of the Vuelta a la Patria program.
Despite the disruption, deportation flights have now resumed. More than 1,700 Venezuelan migrants were deported from the US in May alone.
Special for Orinoco Tribune by staff
OT/JRE/SL
