Two 11-year-old boys have been rescued from the rubble of collapsed buildings within hours of each other after powerful earthquakes struck Venezuela. The first boy, named Moises, was pulled from twisted debris to the applause of rescuers, his eyes covered to protect them from the sun. Hours later, interim President Delcy Rodríguez announced the rescue of another 11-year-old boy and posted a video on X showing him being carried down a huge mound of wreckage on a stretcher.
Death Toll and Missing Persons
Since the magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 quakes on Wednesday, officials have confirmed at least 1,430 deaths. Tens of thousands of people are still missing. It has now been more than 85 hours since the first quake, but rescuers are not giving up hope, saying people could still be alive, especially if they have access to food and water under the rubble.
Details of the Rescues
Columbia's National Unit for Disaster Risk Management (UNGRD) said Moises was buried under about 3m (9.8ft) of debris, and the rescue team spent six hours conducting high-precision work on Saturday to reach him. Reuters reported that a rescuer was overheard on a walkie-talkie saying the young boy was found near his sister and mother, who had both died. Hours later, Delcy Rodríguez posted a video on X, purportedly showing the rescue of the second 11-year-old boy in the town of Caraballeda. “In these hours, every life is hope for Venezuela,” she wrote.
Impact on Coastal Region
Officials said the coastal region of La Guaira, where Caraballeda is located, has been hit the hardest. The two earthquakes, which struck within 39 seconds, caused hundreds of buildings to collapse and many people remain trapped inside. Desperate families have been digging through the debris by hand, trying to find their loved ones. Some have told the BBC that they can hear people under the rubble, but cannot move the heavy slabs of concrete, and are waiting anxiously for heavy machinery to arrive.
Challenges Faced by Rescuers
Rescuers' efforts have been hampered by aftershocks, which are in turn terrifying residents. “To be honest, it makes you feel kind of nervous. Any little noise... horrible,” Jesús Andueza, a 64-year-old bus driver, told BBC Mundo. Thousands of people are living in their cars or camping at places like the airport and golf course, away from buildings that could collapse.
Makeshift Emergency Response Hub
The golf course in Caraballeda has become an epicentre for the emergency response. Its green lawn, which used to be perfectly manicured, is now a makeshift hospital and donation centre, where residents who have lost everything are sifting through piles of donated clothing and boxes of humanitarian aid. In another part of the golf course, next to a small lagoon, a strip of land has been set up as a landing pad for helicopters arriving with supplies and emergency personnel from within Venezuela and abroad.
Survivor Stories
Milagros González, who lives in Caribe, told BBC Mundo that her building was one of the few that didn't collapse, and she fled as soon as she could to take refuge at the golf course. “I left with my two young daughters and my two elderly relatives. But thank God we got out alive. The building can’t be lived in. But we’re alive, which is what matters,” she said. González admitted that every time she lies down, she wakes up dizzy and thinks it’s shaking.
In the area surrounding the golf course, Caraballeda's streets – cracked and covered in rubble – are marked by dust and silence, interrupted only by heavy machinery and those searching among the remains.
