Venezuela welcomes 1,600 foreign rescuers in urgent search for quake survivors

Venezuela’s government said on Saturday that 1,600 members of foreign rescue teams had arrived to help search for survivors of the devastating twin earthquakes, which killed more than 900 people this week, as it tightened access to the worst-affected state. Residents and volunteers in La Guaira, a popular destination for beachgoers where at least 100 buildings, many residential high-rises, were destroyed or damaged, have for days decried shortages of heavy equipment and a limited official presence. Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodriguez said in an overnight address on state television that 10 more countries were still to join rescue efforts and 14,000 military and police members were in La Guaira to patrol and take sanitary measures. “In recent hours, Venezuela has received 17 flights carrying more than 1,600 members of rescue teams, and over the next 24 hours, the arrival of 25 additional flights is expected,” said foreign ministry official Oliver Blanco. “We thank the international community for its support and solidarity during these moments of uncertainty for Venezuelans,” Blanco added on X in the early hours of Saturday. Rescuers have been making their way to sites around La Guaira state and Venezuela’s capital Caracas, although on Friday some areas were still largely without an official presence as families and neighbours struggled to find missing loved ones in the rubble, sometimes digging with their hands. Officials closed the road between La Guaira and nearby Caracas on Friday evening, saying heavy traffic was preventing quick passage of emergency vehicles and official rescuers. Civilians who are not part of official rescue teams will need a credential to pass the roadblock and Reuters witnesses were prevented from using the main road on Saturday morning by police, while an older secondary road was choked with traffic. The government had previously thanked civilians who brought aid, often by motorcycle, to desperate residents. Venezuelan state televi