International Rescue Teams Withdrawn in Venezuela, Efforts Focus on Collecting Rubble and Bodies

Following the double severe earthquake that ravaged Venezuela's La Guaira region and caused massive destruction, search and rescue efforts have entered a new phase. While a large portion of the international rescue teams that came to the country to help have completed their missions and left the area, dozens of heavy machineries were deployed to the field. These heavy machines are making an intensive effort to remove the rubble of demolished buildings and accelerate the recovery of the deceased's bodies. Now, instead of the 实操 international teams, mainly Venezuelan volunteers, firefighters, civil defense teams, and locals who have lost their loved ones are working in the rubble. This shift in the field stands out as a clear indication that the search efforts have transitioned from a hopeful stage to a difficult and mourning recovery process.

Since the earthquake occurred on 24 Haziran, search efforts had been carried out with a great example of international solidarity. A total of 77 different search and rescue teams from 31 different countries and comprising approximately 3.000 people globally were dispatched to the region. According to statements by the United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination Team (UNDAC), the remaining last 25 teams consist of those who replaced the initial groups, particularly teams from Latin American countries. Last Friday, the UN coordination unit held a ceremony to officially hand over responsibility to the Venezüella Civil Defense units. Venezuela's serving Vice President Delcy Rodríguez bid farewell to the rescuers departing from numerous countries such as Spain, Turkey, Germany, Mexico, Colombia, and Chile by honoring them with medals.

The situation of the people in the region and their displacement processes continue to be a growing source of concern for authorities. According to spokespersons for the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), a mass migration movement has begun towards safe regions unaffected by the disaster. Many citizens prefer to migrate to the Táchira and Zulia states, located on the western border with Colombia, or to Delta Amacuro in the east. In the most damaged neighborhoods where buildings were leveled, such as Karaballeda and Playa Grande, the streets are gradually emptying, yet some families continue to live in tents. Hundreds of people who refuse to leave the sides of collapsed buildings even for a moment in hopes of reaching their families' bodies are experiencing immense physical and emotional trauma.

The scale of the disaster is evident, particularly in the massive rubble piles exceeding a total of 1,25 million tons. According to official data, in the Caraballeda region alone, 856 buildings were severely damaged, and 190 of them completely collapsed. Cranes and excavators lined up to clear the debris of demolished buildings pose a significant logistical challenge for local authorities. Currently, empty trucks waiting on main streets and rubble piles accumulating in empty lots reveal how heavily the region's infrastructure has been struck. Authorities and humanitarian aid organizations are working intensively to plan how to manage and where to transport this massive amount of debris and construction waste.

These two major earthquakes, occurring on 24 Haziran with recorded magnitudes of 7,2 and 7,5 respectively, have gone down as one of the most destructive natural disasters in Venezuela's recent history. According to official figures, 2.954 people lost their lives across the country, while more than 16.500 others were injured to varying degrees. Because international search teams can no longer find any signs of life in most areas, the priority in the efforts has shifted from saving lives to offering the grieving families a painful but necessary chance for closure. The recovery of 120 bodies alone from the rubble of a 12-story building in Playa Grande blatantly reveals the horror of the destruction at a single point. The local people, who still have not lost hope that their loved ones survived, continue these difficult and heartbreaking processes entirely relying on their own means and the support of volunteers.