Families in Venezuela are still searching for the remains of their loved ones lost amid the rubble of flattened apartment buildings along the coast of La Guaira, the region that suffered twin earthquakes on June 24.
Government officials report a death toll that has surpassed 5,300, while estimates of the number still missing could rise to as high as 50,000. The BBC’s Latin America correspondent Will Grant visited towns in La Guaira shortly after the tremors, and returned a month later to find relatives continuing their search.
Local volunteers and emergency teams have been combing the collapsed structures, yet the scale of devastation demands more search resources and medical supplies. Calls for sustained humanitarian aid grow louder as the disaster unfolds on top of an already pressing economic crisis.
The 7.8‑magnitude earthquake followed by a 7.6‑magnitude quake killed dozens in Caracas and along the coast, leaving a grim silence and deep uncertainty among families. The tragedy has underscored the critical need for disaster preparedness and robust international support in Venezuela.
