An 18-day-old infant, Juan David, and his mother, Dayana Patino, were rescued from earthquake rubble in Venezuela, where a series of powerful tremors have caused widespread destruction. The mother and child were trapped in their eighth-floor apartment in La Guaira when the earthquakes hit, destroying the building.
Heartwarming footage captured the moment rescue workers carefully swaddled the newborn and placed his mother on a stretcher. Patino recounted how her son provided the motivation to stay alert during the ordeal, stating, "As long as he was alive, I was going to be alive." She described touching her son's nose while trapped to confirm he was still breathing. Juan David sustained only minor injuries, while Patino suffered injuries to both legs.
Patino described the moment she became trapped as feeling like she was "flying," followed by a sensation of sinking in water and dirt. Despite being unable to move with her left leg trapped under concrete and her temple pressed against a rock, she managed to hold onto her son. After initially screaming for help, she conserved her energy, seeing only a small light amid the destruction.
Her rescue came when her brother heard her calls from beneath the wreckage. "I screamed 'Here I am' with all my might, and he said 'I found you, and I promise you that I won't leave until I get you out,'" Patino told the BBC.
Gerson Trujillo, Patino's husband, had just arrived home when the earthquakes struck and feared for his family's life. He described the rescue as a "miracle," saying, "I thought they were dead. And when I saw my son I felt like I was born again."
As of Monday, Venezuelan authorities confirmed 1,719 deaths as a result of the earthquakes, according to the United Nations. The initial quakes registered magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5. The death toll is expected to rise as recovery efforts continue. The US Geological Survey projected that the final death toll could exceed 10,000. At least 5,034 people were injured, and approximately 15,900 have been displaced or affected. An estimated 680,000 children may require assistance due to the disaster.
The World Health Organization has cautioned about potential outbreaks of illnesses such as measles, diphtheria, yellow fever, dengue, and malaria. This is attributed to the destruction of healthcare infrastructure, the loss of health workers, and pre-existing low vaccination rates in the region.