A week after devastating twin earthquakes struck Venezuela, medical professionals are increasingly concerned about the threat of infections and disease among survivors crowded into shelters with inadequate sanitation and limited access to clean water. U.S. assistance has increased, with military personnel on the ground to support relief efforts.
Doctors at hospitals, already strained by Venezuela's economic crisis, are facing an influx of patients with untreated wounds. "The issue we foresee just around the corner is the infections that patients who have been exposed to the disaster for the longest time might bring," said Eugenio Cova, head of the trauma unit at Hospital del Oeste Dr. José Gregorio Hernández in Caracas. He noted that while complex trauma care continues, it is now compounded by infection risks. Parts of the hospital have been rendered inaccessible due to earthquake damage, and the facility, like many others nationwide, lacks essential supplies for orthopedic surgery and infection prevention.
The U.S. Southern Command has deployed 900 military personnel to aid relief and rescue operations. According to spokesperson Steven McLoud, these personnel have repaired the runway at Caracas's main international airport to facilitate humanitarian aid and positioned naval assets offshore to receive airlifted survivors. An additional 100 U.S. State Department personnel have also been sent to assist.
The U.S. administration has committed $300 million in aid, channeled through aid groups and the United Nations. However, direct material damage from the quakes is estimated at over $6.7 billion, according to U.N. Development Program satellite analysis. The U.N. agencies estimate that the earthquakes generated 1.2 million tons of debris.
Even before the earthquakes, Venezuela's public hospitals struggled with shortages of water, electricity, medical equipment, and staff. The ongoing economic crisis has led more than 8 million people, including medical professionals, to flee the country in recent years. The government has reported over 10,571 injuries from the quakes, an increase of 5,000 in a single day.
Aid workers express concern that the damaged infrastructure is creating conditions ripe for disease. "It’s very hot and there’s a lot of concern about potential vector-borne diseases. Waste management is an issue. Debris management, when you see the scale of devastation, it’s very concerning," said Veronique Durroux, the U.N. humanitarian agency spokesperson for Latin America and the Caribbean.
As of Tuesday, Venezuelan officials reported 1,943 deaths, with the number expected to rise. Thousands remain missing, leaving families in uncertainty. A non-governmental digital database for registering missing persons showed over 40,600 people unaccounted for as of Wednesday.