Venezuelans are resorting to digging through earthquake rubble with their bare hands to recover the bodies of loved ones as international rescue teams prepare to depart and frustration mounts over the government's response. More than 11 days after twin earthquakes struck the country, many citizens are left to undertake the grim task of unearthing the dead on their own.
Noel Márquez, who survived when his apartment building collapsed and caught fire, described the agonizing wait for a crane to free his 17-year-old brother, Leonel, whose legs were pinned. Despite Leonel's cries for help, the heavy machinery never arrived, and his voice eventually fell silent. Márquez and his father were then forced to try and extract their family members' remains themselves.
"It’s unfair. It’s inhumane, everything that is happening," Márquez said from a makeshift morgue at La Guaira port. "We couldn’t get my brother out because we didn’t get a response from the state ... and after 11 days, we are still requesting a crane."
Many Venezuelans report being left without government assistance in the immediate aftermath of the quakes, and this lack of support continues as they search for their deceased. Norely Rodríguez, in the hardest-hit state of La Guaira, spoke of trying to recover her 5-year-old daughter's body. "I found her hand, but her torso is crushed," she said. "I want to see if I can get her out whole."
William Gomez, a firefighter in La Guaira, noted the increasing difficulty and gruesome nature of the recovery process due to decomposition. "It has been difficult because the bodies are already in an advanced state of decomposition, decomposed to such an extent that many times when we try to remove them, they fall apart."
Authorities have reported a death toll of 3,342, with an additional 16,740 injuries. However, the number of those still missing and buried beneath the rubble remains uncounted, though more than 30,000 missing person reports have been submitted to an opposition-run website.
In La Guaira over the weekend, civilian efforts dominated the wreckage sites, with families using rudimentary tools and occasionally assisted by remaining firefighters and Mexican rescuers. "We are the ones helping ourselves: our family. Nobody else helps us except for a few volunteers," said Yeikhary Urbina, who found the bodies of her mother and brother. International search teams from Italy, Argentina, and Spain have already returned home.
The Venezuelan government has not officially called off the search for survivors but has shifted its focus to reconstruction efforts under a program called "Venezuela Reborn." Acting President Delcy Rodríguez announced on state television that the nation is entering a phase of infrastructure and housing recovery.
For families still searching for their loved ones, the situation presents further horrors. Some have spent days searching for bodies so decomposed they are unrecognizable. Others have found nothing at all. Geraldine Perdomo recounted her sister's despair while digging through the ruins of her home for any sign of her two daughters.
Márquez shared his continued anguish, stating that while authorities located his mother and grandfather's bodies on Sunday, Leonel "is still missing because of the negligence here."
Residents of public housing blocks, many built under former socialist leader Hugo Chávez, have long voiced concerns about substandard construction, which they believe predates the disaster. One 42-year-old police officer, who asked to be identified only by his first name due to fear of retaliation, expressed fury at the government. He cited neglected resident concerns about shoddy construction, delayed rescue efforts, and the lack of heavy machinery to recover bodies.
After 11 days of searching, the officer managed to locate the body of his 12-year-old daughter, which, although decomposed, was intact. "She was waiting for me to pull her out," he said, holding the body bag.