FRANTIC searches are continuing for those trapped alive under destroyed buildings in Venezuela after two severe earthquakes last week which killed at least 1,450 people. Tens of thousands more are still missing.
Thirty-three people were pulled alive from the rubble over the weekend, four days after the double quakes struck on Wednesday. But hopes of finding more survivors are now fading. More than 250 tower blocks collapsed in the worst affected city of La Guaira, just north of the capital Caracas, and residents say that some of them have yet to be searched for survivors. Residents are attempting to shift the rubble themselves, and report hearing survivors crying out for help underneath.
At least 3,360 people are known to be wounded. A missing persons website includes 46,000 names.
Churches are among the buildings destroyed and badly damaged, including Caracas Cathedral, which has been damaged many times in earthquakes since a building was first erected in the same location in the 17th century.
The Roman Catholic Archbishop of Caracas, the Most Revd Raúl Biord Castello, visited the church of San José de Ñarauli, which was badly damaged. Standing in the rubble inside, he posted a video on social media.
“Our hearts are with the deceased — we pray for their eternal rest — and with those injured who are being rescued, as well as all the people who have lost loved ones. [This earthquake] was a very powerful natural phenomenon,” he said.
“Amidst all of this — Christian and Catholic alike — we must all form a great network of solidarity to help those brothers and sisters who are suffering material losses. We are deeply pained by the damage to our artistic heritage, but that can be recovered over time. But human life is what is most important.”
The congregation of San José de Ñarauli parish were at a mass outside the church the next day, attended by the Archbishop.
A large majority of the population of Venezuela identifies as Christian, the vast majority of whom are Roman Catholic, numbering around 22 million. A minority, estimated between three and five million, are Protestant.
Pope Leo sent an initial emergency donation of €100,000. “I wish to express my closeness to the Venezuelan sisters and brothers affected by the recent earthquakes that caused numerous victims and injuries,” he said in Spanish before the Angelus prayer in Rome, on Sunday.
“I also wish to express my gratitude and encouragement to those generously working on search-and-rescue efforts and providing assistance.”
The Pope spent decades as a missionary and bishop in Peru, and is a fluent Spanish speaker. He is planning a tour of southern Latin America in November that is expected to include Peru, Argentina, and Uruguay.
The Archbishop of Canterbury also shared a prayer on Sunday, saying: “We pray for all those who are grieving, or waiting for news of loved ones. We pray for those who have been injured, and all those who are courageously and selflessly supporting the rescue and relief efforts. And we pray, too, for the churches and faith communities who are offering pastoral care and solace at this immensely painful time.”
The diocese of Venezuela is part of Province IX of the Episcopal Church, and has nine clergy serving in 15 organised missions.
The Episcopal Bishop-elect of Los Angeles, Dr Antonio Gallardo, is from Venezuela, where many of his family still live. In a post on Facebook he urged people to donate to Episcopal Relief and Development, which is helping survivors on the ground.
He posted: “This afternoon I joined close to 100 leaders from different faith traditions united in prayers for Venezuela. We asked for God’s compassion, wisdom and generosity. We prayed for the victims, children and families, the Venezuelan government, the leaders from other countries, for pastors and the clergy community on the ground, medical personnel, rescuers, non-profits and churches, donors, volunteers, and all who are helping. We prayed for shattered dreams, for separated families, for unity, and for the land.”
Venezuelans are growing increasingly critical of their government’s response to the disaster, criticising it as too slow. Venezuela has endured years of economic collapse, political instability, and hyperinflation, which forced millions into poverty and devastated health care and other social infrastructure. Millions of people have fled the country.
The US struck Venezuela in a rapid assault in January (News, 9 January), seizing President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, and the Trump administration has held increasing sway over the acting President Delcy Rodríguez ever since.
A preliminary satellite assessment by the United Nations Development Programme has revealed the scale of the damage, and estimates that the earthquakes caused direct physical damage of about $6.7 billion — equivalent to about six per cent of the country’s gross domestic product.