A Jordanian rescue team has reported the rescue of a three-year-old child alive from beneath the rubble, six days after a devastating earthquake struck Venezuela.
Video footage captured during the rescue shows the team cheering after pulling the child out from the debris.
According to the country’s interim president, the boy is named Kleiber Moran; he was rescued from the ruins of a building in La Guaira state.
Interim President Delcy Rodríguez described the child’s rescue as a moment of hope.
The death toll from two earthquakes—measuring 7.2 and 7.5 in magnitude—that struck Venezuela last week has risen to 1,943.
More than 10,000 people have been injured in the earthquakes. Several thousand others remain missing, or there is no information regarding their whereabouts.
Preliminary assessments based on data from NASA satellites indicate that approximately 58,870 buildings were damaged or completely destroyed by the two powerful earthquakes, which struck Venezuela just 39 seconds apart on the evening of Wednesday, June 24.
The United Nations has warned that thousands of people there are in need of food and shelter.
Jordan’s Civil Defense stated that Kleiber was taken to the hospital after receiving initial medical treatment and is currently in stable condition.
Jorge Rodríguez, President of Venezuela’s National Assembly, reported that the child is undergoing treatment in the capital, Caracas.
Experts consider the first three days following an earthquake to be the most critical period for rescuing survivors trapped in the rubble. Kleiber was rescued alive well beyond that timeframe.
La Guaira is one of the areas hardest hit by the earthquake; in many locations there, local residents are attempting to carry out rescue operations themselves.
The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) stated yesterday, Tuesday, that a severe food crisis has emerged in La Guaira. Basic services there have collapsed, and communication networks have been largely severed.
In a statement on its website, the UNHCR added that aid remains limited, leading to rising tensions among the local population.
Daniela Armas, an 18-year-old street vendor from La Guaira, was injured after falling off her motorbike during the earthquake. She told AFP, “Some relief supplies are being distributed, but at times people almost pounce on each other for food… it’s like a cockfight.”
The UNHCR stated that an initial $15 million is required over the next six months to scale up protection, emergency relief supplies, and temporary shelter services for the 30,000 people affected by the earthquake.
Jorge Rodríguez said that the rescue of Kleiber alive proves there is still hope of finding survivors beneath the rubble.
He added that domestic and international rescue teams are continuing their search operations amidst the debris.
International aid has begun arriving in Venezuela following the earthquake. A UN spokesperson reported that 47 tons of humanitarian relief supplies arrived yesterday; these include emergency medical supplies, kits for safe childbirth, equipment for newborn care, and disease prevention materials.
