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Damage to hospitals, schools, and water systems is exacerbating the situation for affected families, many of whom remain displaced.<\/p>\n
The two earthquakes, measuring 7.2 and 7.5 on the Richter scale, left at least 1,430 people dead and 3,238 injured, according to the latest official count. More than 3,100 families have been affected, while authorities continue to assess the damage and aftershocks maintain uncertainty in the affected areas.<\/p>\n
On Saturday, the UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Venezuela, Gianluca Rampolla, carried out\u00a0his first mission to La Guaira, the most state most affected by the earthquake, accompanied by several UN agencies. The visit included a tour of some of the hardest-hit areas and the coordination centre for search and rescue teams.<\/p>\n
Together with the authorities, the mission also made progress in identifying locations to install services for families who lost their homes or cannot return to them.<\/p>\n
Mr. Rampolla highlighted that, alongside the destruction and the anguish of the families, he found that neighbours, volunteers and rescue teams from around the globe had mobilised in support of the victims.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt a time when we\u2019re always focused on the bad things happening in the world, here\u2019s a gesture of solidarity from around the globe to support Venezuelans,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe first priority is to get the people still alive out of the rubble, and that\u2019s why supporting and coordinating the teams arriving from all over the world is so important. At the same time, we have to support the survivors.\u201d<\/p>\n
Teams from 27 countries, with more than 2,200 rescuers and 140 search dogs, are working to locate people trapped under the rubble, with UN support in coordination.<\/p>\n
Writing on social media, UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher and head of its humanitarian agency OCHA, stressed that \u201cevery minute, every hour, counts<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n A representative of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies described the emotional impact of the search efforts, in which hope, pain, and fear of aftershocks are mixed.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople haven\u2019t lost hope. Hours pass, but all efforts are focused on saving lives and helping people,\u201d he said. \u201cThe sense of community is immense. There\u2019s a strength that comes from the desire to find friends and loved ones, and that\u2019s mixed with pain, with fear because the earthquake is still shaking, and with immense fragility.\u201d<\/p>\n