Regime's Insufficient Response to 7.2 and 7.5 Magnitude Earthquakes in Venezuela

Following two earthquakes of 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude in Venezuela, the response by the regime and national armed forces has been characterized by serious delays, operational shortcomings, and an over-reliance on international aid. The United Nations (UN) representative in Venezuela reported that the organization had procured 10,000 body bags, revealing the scale of the disaster, with heavy damage noted particularly in the Caracas and La Guaira regions. In the absence of official institutions during the first hours, citizens and volunteers began rescue efforts with their limited means, but proved insufficient against the urgency of the situation. This situation clearly demonstrates the state's lack of preparedness for disaster management and the failure to implement existing plans.

Despite the need for a rapid response to the catastrophe, the Venezuela Seismic Research Foundation (Funvisis) was able to publish its first report only about 3 hours and 40 minutes after the events. Although the first hours are vital in seismic disasters, it is evident that command, control, and communication protocols were not activated. Citizens and volunteer groups were forced to attempt rescues using their own vehicles and without any training before the state was sufficiently present on the ground. This highlights the failure of official institutions to mobilize search and rescue teams and exposes a gap in responsibility. Despite the efforts of volunteers, the fact that civilian resources alone were insufficient in the face of the disaster proves how fragile the system is.

While the National Armed Forces (FAN) were expected to be the key support in logistics, field hospitals, engineering services, and security, their level of operational readiness is reported to have remained at around 30%, failing to provide the necessary support. According to an expert, the operational readiness level in Venezuela being so low, compared to the 70% standard considered effective for an army, paints a concerning picture. The disorganized structure and lack of discipline within military units caused problems in controlling access to disaster zones and hindered aid work. The perception of the armed forces primarily as a tool of repression undermines their fundamental function of ensuring national security and meeting logistical needs in disaster management.

Civil society organized missing persons reports and attempted to coordinate rescue work via social media before official authorities stepped in. The UN and civil society organizations have called for the lifting of restrictions on social media platforms to improve coordination. People being forced to turn to digital platforms instead of official sources of information is the most concrete indicator of the transparency and leadership void in governance. Although the earthquakes caused an extraordinary picture of destruction, building collapses, and communication outages, disaster plans should have been prepared to cover such scenarios. However, the regime's response has painfully revealed the erosion of institutional capacity and the dysfunction of disaster management mechanisms.

Hospitals, already in a crisis situation before the disaster, have reached a total breaking point with the earthquakes. Years of infrastructure degradation, shortages of medical consumables, and the migration of healthcare personnel have hindered emergency response. While international aid arriving from more than 30 countries is a positive step, some rescue teams being denied entry permits or facing bureaucratic hurdles has led to a critical loss of time. Allegations of corruption in the distribution of aid materials and the lack of transparency in processes stand out as the biggest threat to aid reaching the most vulnerable segments of society.