'Every person saved is a miracle': Families call to trapped loved ones in region devastated by Venezuela quakes

'Every person saved is a miracle': Families call to trapped loved ones in region devastated by Venezuela quakesImage source, Diko Betancourt/Anadolu via Getty ImagesImage caption, People search through the rubble unprotected, using whatever they canByAlicia Hernández and Nicole KolsterBBC News Mundo, Reporting fromLondon and La Guaira, VenezuelaPublished27 June 2026, 20:17 BSTUpdated 1 hour agoBare hands and shovels shift through the rubble, while a drone scans overhead. Every moment, every action matters. It is a race against time to find survivors.Here in the coastal state of La Guaira, which borders the capital district containing nearby Caracas, catastrophic damage is seen almost everywhere you look. The state has been one of the hardest-hit areas after back-to-back earthquakes struck Venezuela on Wednesday. Residents and families are desperately searching the rubble for their loved ones and belongings. They are listening carefully for any sound that might indicate someone is alive trapped under the concrete and metal wire debris. So far, officials have confirmed at least 1430 deaths from the magnitudes 7.2 and 7.5 earthquakes - the latter being one of the strongest quakes recorded in the country in the last century. Hundreds of buildings collapsed and beneath the rubble, thousands of Venezuelans remain. The number of dead and injured rises by the hour. The UN estimates around 50,000 people are missing.National rescue teams are scarce, although international rescuers from Mexico, Spain, the US and the UK have arrived to join the rescue effort.But, it is still not enough.Image source, AFP via Getty ImagesImage caption, La Guaira, the area hardest hit by the earthquakes in VenezuelaHumanitarian aid agencies say the first 48 to 72 hours are crucial for rescuing people alive, although this window can be longer if those trapped have access to food and water."Every person saved is a miracle," says Jorge Rodríguez, president of the country's Na...