A rescue operation in La Guaira has succeeded in getting a toddler out alive from under the rubble, six days since the double-earthquake disaster in Venezuela.
The miraculous story of the three-year-old’s rescue in the worst-hit northern region came as tens of thousands of people remained without adequate shelter after the 7.2- and 7.5-magnitude quakes struck less than a minute apart on June 24.
“As the death toll rises, needs are skyrocketing,” the UN refugee agency said in an online alert.
According to the authorities, nearly 2,000 deaths have been confirmed, and more than 6,400 people have been rescued so far.
Multiple UN agencies and partners remain on the ground in the hardest-hit areas, working alongside local authorities and aid partners to help families access shelter, healthcare, protection and other essential services.
“Every life matters,” the UN aid coordination office, OCHA, insisted on Wednesday, as national and international search and rescue teams remained on the ground in La Guaira.
Also helping to assess needs, UN Disaster Assessment Coordination (UNDAC) teams are continuing their work to know “where and for whom humanitarian assistance is needed”, UNDAC public information officer Veronique Durroux said.
In total, some 1,000 buildings, including hospitals, have been damaged or completely destroyed, along with more than 400 schools and water systems.
In response to the emergency, an initial 47-tonne shipment of humanitarian supplies from the UN Children’s Fund arrived in Venezuela on Tuesday.
Those supplies are in addition to a regional shipment from Panama that arrived on 28 June.
Combined, they will support more than 100,000 children and families over three months.
“UNICEF is on the ground and working around the clock to reach as many children…
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