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Twin quakes, mass morgues
In Venezuela’s coastal state of La Guaira, twin earthquakes struck on June 24 and left a makeshift morgue at the port La Guaira guarding the bodies of thousands of people who died more than a week ago.
“At least 2,295 people have died and thousands are still missing”
NBC News described bodies of earthquake victims laid out on the cement of a seaside pier at the port, where coffins and body bags were arranged as recovery continued.
India Today reported that families in La Guaira were racing to identify dead as morgues overflowed, with at least 2,295 people reported dead and thousands still missing after the back-to-back earthquakes.
India Today also said bodies were kept in open areas including parking lots, while relatives waited in line outside a makeshift morgue at La Guaira seaport.
The BBC said the same scene repeated at a port storage facility transformed into a makeshift morgue in La Guaira, where families waited hours to confirm the deaths of loved ones as the death toll surpassed 2,600.
Identification ordeal, missing access
At the port storage facility, the BBC reported that armed personnel from the Bolivarian Armed Forces controlled access to the site as families searched hospitals, shelters and rubble for nearly a week.
A woman quoted by the BBC said, "I'm afraid of what I'm going to see in there, but it's the only way to end this agony," as she passed through the gate.
The BBC described how families were directed to two television screens showing more than 1,000 images of bodies, with forensic specialists using dental records to help identify victims.
In La Guaira, India Today quoted Rosa Lopez describing how she had to step around rows of bodies lying under the harsh sun while searching for her missing husband, Jose Antonio Toledo.
India Today also quoted forensic technician Joel Mirabal warning that "Obviously, mass graves will have to be created" as the collapse left bodies buried under many layers of debris.
Relief strain and stakes
As local services struggled, the BBC said the scale of the disaster overwhelmed local services and forced institutions to improvise with bodies put outside or in temporary tents nine days after the tremors.
“the scale of the disaster has overwhelmed local services, forcing institutions to improvise”
NBC News framed the port La Guaira as a temporary morgue and said the destruction added to years of crisis for Venezuela as rescue and identification continued.
India Today reported that forensic technician Joel Mirabal expected the number of bodies recovered to rise sharply and said he had worked for seven straight days since the 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude earthquakes struck.
The same India Today report said bodies that cannot be identified were sent to forensic specialists at La Guaira seaport, where private companies donated large cooling containers to help preserve them.
In the AFP-distributed account carried by lecourrier.vn, interim president Delcy Rodríguez wrote on X that "every life is a source of hope for Venezuela" after a young boy was pulled alive from the rubble in Playa Grande, La Guaira.