Among the devastating images coming out of Venezuela, is one of a woman waving a piece of clothing from a damaged building in La Guaira, hoping to be rescued.
She is one of many people who were trapped inside their homes following two of the strongest earthquakes to hit the country in more than a century. Both quakes struck near Venezuela’s northern coast, with the first — a magnitude 7.2 — hitting at around 6:04 p.m. local time, and the second — a magnitude 7.5 — occurring just 40 seconds later.
“I don’t think we can really comprehend just what this is, you know, having two huge earthquakes so close together,” said Jon Rosemberg, a Toronto resident who grew up in Caracas. “It’s heartbreaking.”
First responders, rescue workers and civilians spent the night combing through the rubble of collapsed buildings trying to find survivors. The two earthquakes battered the country’s already fragile infrastructure with hundreds of buildings toppled in the cities of Caracas and La Guaira. Nearly 200 people have been killed and there are fears the death toll could climb to the thousands. But rescue efforts have been complicated by decades of corruption and a lack of investment in basic services some say.
“First responders and all of the infrastructure that can be used for a situation like this, there’s no resources available,” said Rosemberg in an interview with CTV News.
Today Venezuela’s President Delcy Rodriguez, called for unity in the face of the disaster in a televised address The earthquake is likely to further test her presidency as new concerns about the long-term impact the damages will have on the stability of the country.
Rodriguez was installed after the United States ousted former president Nicolas Maduro in January. While many Venezuelans had hoped their country had turned a corner after decades of his oppressive rule, they say the natural disaster could present new challenges.
“The country has gone through so much over the past two decades and we feel like there was finally a recovery starting to happen. And now to see the devastation and to see how much the infrastructure has suffered…it’s heartbreaking,” Rosemberg said.
Canada is among the many nations promising assistance, pledging an initial $5 million in humanitarian assistance on Thursday to support emergency relief efforts.
“We are working with our partners directly and we will scale things as appropriate to move forward,” Prime Minister Mark Carney told reporters in Ottawa on Thursday.
Carney acknowledged one of the key challenges in helping Canadians on the ground in Venezuela, is that Canada does not have an embassy there. While there are no imminent plans to reopen one, the prime minister said the disaster serves as a reminder of the importance of maintaining a presence in foreign countries, even adversarial ones.
Rosemberg is also encouraging Canadians to help out in any way they can.
“Whether it’s reaching out to a Venezuelan…and checking in on them or donating,” he said. “I think it makes a huge difference in this moment. You know, a lot of times when we see a tragedy, we are hesitant about reaching out to people… but a small action can go a long way.”
