“Tons of rubble”: 58,000 buildings estimated to have been destroyed in Venezuela earthquakes | Venezuela

More than 58,000 buildings may have been damaged and destroyed by the two earthquakes that struck Venezuela last week, according to a preliminary analysis of satellite data that suggests the extent of the destruction may exceed official estimates.

Last Wednesday’s successive earthquakes – measuring 7.2 and 7.5 – killed at least 1,943 people, injured more than 10,571, and left tens of thousands missing in the rubble. The UN migration agency said up to 6.8 million people could be affected by the disasters, and will need shelter, water, sanitation, health care and basic relief items.

With hopes of finding survivors fading, efforts are being made to determine the true extent of the damage. Jorge Rodriguez, president of the National Assembly, said Monday that 855 buildings were damaged, including 189 “total collapses.”

But a preliminary assessment of satellite data published by NASA raises the possibility of more serious and widespread damage.

After analyzing high-resolution radar images collected the day after the earthquakes by the European Space Agency’s Sentinel-1 satellites, researchers at Oregon State University concluded that “approximately 58,870 buildings were likely damaged or destroyed throughout the affected area.”

Magnitude of past earthquakes

They added: “This is a preliminary and rapid assessment. It reflects a sudden change in the surface consistent with the damage.”

Meanwhile, the World Health Organization has sounded the alarm about the potential for disease outbreaks, as strained and damaged health facilities in Venezuela struggle to deal with the effects of the earthquakes.

“Health services are under severe pressure now, with facilities operating beyond their capacity,” WHO spokesman Christian Lindmeier said at a press conference in Geneva.

He added that there was an “increased risk” of measles and diphtheria outbreaks due to low vaccination levels before the quake, as well as yellow fever, malaria, dengue, chikungunya and Zika.

The World Health Organization said its preliminary findings found gaps in obstetric care in the hard-hit coastal city of La Guaira because maternity care workers were still missing after the quakes. She also noted “the chaotic provision of services and the flow of patients, which is characterized by overcrowding.” [and] The backlog of surgeries is increasing.” He said there were problems in properly registering victims and tracking missing persons.

A search and rescue dog searches for victims amid the rubble of a destroyed building in La Guaira, Venezuela. Photography: Edilzon Gamez/Getty Images

The government militarized La Guaira and imposed a permit requirement to enter the disaster area. The US military repaired and reopened the city’s port, with at least one warehouse converted into a makeshift morgue for hundreds of unidentified bodies in body bags.

Gianluca Rampolla, the UN coordinator in Venezuela, said 27 countries have mobilized nearly 40 search and rescue teams. These forces include more than 2,000 soldiers and individuals, along with more than 160 dogs. Rampolla said the United Nations would provide 10,000 body bags, although it hoped the final number would be lower.

Waiting for news – good or bad – exacerbates public anger at the failure of authorities to prepare for disaster and respond more quickly once earthquakes strike.

Daniela Mangiafico has not heard from her 80-year-old grandmother Josefa Páez Verdejo since the building they lived in in the Tanaguarina area of ​​La Guaira collapsed last Wednesday. Mangiafico’s three chihuahuas and her five cats were also lost or trapped.

“My whole life is gone: everything, my grandmother, my pets, they’re all my family,” she said on Sunday. “What happened is that help arrived too late. It took a long time, and obviously, how can you ask the people trapped there to wait?”

Two days later, Mangiafico said a voice might have been her grandmother’s. The family still hopes she has been able to take shelter in a space behind her bed.

A man tries to extract victims from the rubble of a collapsed building in the Tanaguarina neighborhood of La Guaira. Photography: Leonardo Fernandez Viloria – Reuters

“They completely forgot about us in Tanaguarina,” Mangiveco’s sister, Jennifer, said in a video posted Tuesday morning.

“Rescuers have arrived, but not the kind we need. We need machines because we can no longer do anything by hand. There are tons and tons of rubble that we cannot lift with our hands.”

Nicolas Serrato, a volunteer rescuer from southern Venezuela, said the devastation he saw in and around La Guaira was astonishing.

“Very few buildings were not affected,” he added. “The vast majority of homes, from small houses to three-storey buildings and huge apartment complexes, were all severely damaged. Those still standing suffer from serious structural problems.”

Cerrato said the estimate of 50,000 damaged buildings matches well with what he saw.

“It’s really brutal,” he said. “All these people who survived are now looking for their families. There is a very deep emergency, and it is very important to help now because this is very difficult.”

Agence France-Presse and Reuters contributed to this report

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