'Every person saved is a miracle': Families call to trapped loved ones in region devastated by Venezuela quakes

Image source, Diko Betancourt/Anadolu via Getty Images Image caption, People search through the rubble unprotected, using whatever they can By Alicia Hernández and Nicole Kolster BBC News Mundo , Reporting from London and La Guaira, Venezuela Published 27 June 2026, 20:17 BST Updated 1 hour ago Bare hands and shovels shift through the rubble, while a drone scans overhead. Every moment, every action matters. It is a race against time to find survivors. Here in the coastal state of La Guaira, which borders the capital district containing nearby Caracas, catastrophic damage is seen almost everywhere you look. The state has been one of the hardest-hit areas after back-to-back earthquakes struck Venezuela on Wednesday. Residents and families are desperately searching the rubble for their loved ones and belongings. They are listening carefully for any sound that might indicate someone is alive trapped under the concrete and metal wire debris. So far, officials have confirmed at least 1430 deaths from the magnitudes 7.2 and 7.5 earthquakes - the latter being one of the strongest quakes recorded in the country in the last century. Hundreds of buildings collapsed and beneath the rubble, thousands of Venezuelans remain. The number of dead and injured rises by the hour. The UN estimates around 50,000 people are missing. National rescue teams are scarce, although international rescuers from Mexico, Spain, the US and the UK have arrived to join the rescue effort. But, it is still not enough. Image source, AFP via Getty Images Image caption, La Guaira, the area hardest hit by the earthquakes in Venezuela Humanitarian aid agencies say the first 48 to 72 hours are crucial for rescuing people alive, although this window can be longer if those trapped have access to food and water. "Every person saved is a miracle," says Jorge Rodríguez, president of the country's National Assembly. "We will not hide anything about the scale of this tragedy." 'It's impossible to rescue him without machinery' In Catia La Mar, one of the coastal towns in La Guaira state, the mood is bleak. Few structures remain standing. Government forces have distributed food and water to survivors, and interim President Delcy Rodríguez has said the government is deploying a comprehensive rescue response during these "critical hours to rescue people alive". People linger anxiously around areas where they believe their relatives might be trapped. Jesús Suárez is one of them. He travelled 200km (124m) to search for his son, Jean Suárez. "There's no information at all. People who know him say they didn't see him come out or anything." "I believe he might be in there," he says pointing to the rubble of a collapsed building. Suárez faces a dilemma that many here also share: "It's impossible to rescue him... There is no sophisticated equipment here. A human being alone cannot do it - it's too dangerous." Devastating images from the Venezuelan earthquakes Aerial footage reveals destruction in coas