Venezuela (MNN) — Nearly two weeks after twin earthquakes struck Venezuela’s capital region, survivors have entered a second phase of crisis.
More than 17,000 people are homeless — living on the streets, parks, or in temporary shelters.
Annabel Torrealba with TWR says, “They need a place to live. So [on Monday] they say they will start to find options [for] trying to send people to different states outside the La Guaira area and Caracas.”
Venezuela earthquake damage (Photo courtesy of Gerson Hernandez, TWR listener)
Caracas and La Guaira were the worst-hit areas. Urgent needs include food, water, and healthcare. Torrealba expects that it will take months to relocate families and years to rebuild.
On the infrastructure side, the earthquakes damaged or destroyed more than 800 buildings. That’s only a preliminary count.
On the human side, the death toll reached 3,342 on Sunday, with tens of thousands of people still missing. Torrealba says many rescue teams left on Sunday after detecting no further signs of life beneath the rubble.
“They say they don’t have anything else to do, they can’t do anything else there,” she says.
Some survivors lost their entire families. One man told Torrealba that most people are still in shock.
“It’s hard to describe when you see their faces. It’s hard to describe the emotions that they are holding,” Torrealba says. “So keep praying for them. We need prayers.”
The team at RTM Venezuela, TWR’s local partner, is producing special programs that offer psychological and emotional support to survivors. They have WhatsApp groups for specific prayer requests.
“Also, we are partnering with a big group that works with churches in the country to raise support to buy some of the needs, like those water tanks that they need, Bibles also,” says Torrealba.
Local believers are distributing practical aid as the hands and feet of Christ.
“We know the Church is united, and they are going to places where the government is not giving aid yet. Basically, they are in these small villages bringing food and water,” says Torrealba.
Please continue praying for God’s comfort, mercy, and provision for the people of Venezuela. Pray that survivors will find hope in God.
“July 5 was Independence Day for Venezuela, but nobody talked about it, because there is so much grief, there is so much suffering,” Torrealba says.
Venezuela earthquake aftermath (Photo courtesy of Gerson Hernandez, TWR listener)
Header photo of Venezuela earthquake damage (Photo courtesy of Gerson Hernandez, TWR listener)
