Two 11-year-old boys have been pulled alive from collapsed buildings within hours of each other, as Venezuela reels from the deadliest earthquakes to hit the country in more than a century. One of them, named Moises, was buried under 3m of debris for days before a rescue team spent six hours conducting “high-precision work” on Saturday to reach him. Video footage showed him being lifted from the twisted wreckage, his eyes covered to protect them from the sun, as rescuers applauded. Hours later, interim president Delcy Rodríguez announced another 11-year-old boy had been rescued in the coastal town of Caraballeda, posting a video on X of the child being carried down a mound of wreckage on a stretcher. “In these hours, every life is hope for Venezuela,” she wrote.
But for many, hope is running out. The dual earthquakes – magnitude 7.2 and 7.5, striking within 39 seconds – have killed at least 1,430 people, officials have confirmed. Tens of thousands remain missing. The coastal region of La Guaira has been hit hardest, where more than 100 buildings have been flattened and desperate families are digging through debris by hand, waiting for heavy machinery that has yet to arrive. “There are still people in there, we need machinery,” pleaded affected resident Eileen Lada. “Help us, please.”
“Two 11-year-old boys rescued and a baby born amid rubble as Venezuela earthquake death toll exceeds 1,400.”
In Caracas, ex-policeman Jan Carlos Roa Garcia stood outside his condemned apartment building, tears rolling down his cheeks. “If I was 30 and not 50, then maybe. But I don’t know where to begin. And so far, no-one in authority has contacted us,” he said. Musician Zaira Castro was blunter: “We’re all pretty frustrated because the government is not showing what it should – a serious display of help. It’s actually us, the Venezuelans, who are helping each other.” When Delcy Rodríguez toured the Chacao district with the mayor, she was met with shouts from residents: “You’re campaigning in the middle of a tragedy! The government isn’t doing anything for the people.”
Yet amid the devastation, extraordinary moments of life have emerged. Footage captured a woman giving birth on a pavement beside a collapsed building in La Guaira, with Dr María Fernanda Terán acting as an impromptu midwife. “Bringing a Baby to the world while the earth shakes in #laguairavenezuela is the greatest challenge of my life,” Terán wrote on social media. Local news outlets say both mother and newborn are doing well. And in another rescue, an 18-day-old baby was carefully lifted from the ruins, wrapped in a pillowcase, and handed back to her father as onlookers applauded. Rescue teams freed the mother about 90 minutes later.
Rescuers have been hampered by aftershocks that terrify survivors. “To be honest, it makes you feel kind of nervous. Any little noise… horrible,” said Jesús Andueza, a 64-year-old bus driver. Thousands are sleeping in cars or camping on a Caraballeda golf course that has become a makeshift hospital and donation centre. King Charles and Queen Camilla have issued a personal message to the people of Venezuela, saying they are “deeply saddened”. But for many here, the question remains: will help arrive before it is too late?