Security Guard found alive after 8 days trapped under rubble as Venezuela quake death toll nears 2,600

In a rare glimmer of hope amid the devastation, a 43-year-old security guard was found alive under the rubble of a collapsed building more than a week after Venezuela's twin earthquakes, as the country's interim President Delcy Rodriguez confirmed that nearly 2,600 people are now known to have been killed.

In a rare glimmer of hope amid the devastation, a 43-year-old security guard was found alive under the rubble of a collapsed building more than a week after Venezuela’s twin earthquakes, as the country’s interim President Delcy Rodriguez confirmed that nearly 2,600 people are now known to have been killed. Hernán Alberto Gil Flores was pulled from the rubble eight days after the quakes struck Catia La Mar, a town in La Guaira state, offering a moment of relief for rescue teams who had largely shifted focus to recovery.

Rescue workers attending to Gil after his rescue described the moment as extraordinary, given that hope of finding survivors had faded days earlier. The discovery came as Rodriguez stressed that rescue efforts are still ongoing, even as the death toll continues to rise. The twin earthquakes, which hit just seconds apart with magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5 on June 24, have caused widespread devastation across Venezuela, with NASA estimating that some 59,000 buildings were damaged or destroyed.

The World Health Organisation has warned that Venezuela’s healthcare system is under significant strain, with at least three health centres critically damaged and others partially functional. The thousands displaced by the quakes are also at risk of disease outbreaks, including yellow fever and dengue, given relatively low vaccination coverage. International aid has been arriving, with the United States sending 89 metric tonnes of essential supplies and setting up an emergency field hospital.

The Global News Podcast, which covers breaking news from around the world, highlighted the Venezuelan tragedy alongside other major stories, including the WHO’s trials to find a treatment for the current Ebola strain spreading through the Democratic Republic of Congo, a BBC investigation revealing that Meta is running paid advertisements on Instagram in India promoting child sexual abuse material, and a dramatic finish seeing Portugal beat Croatia to progress to the last 16 of the football World Cup. As Venezuela continues to grapple with the aftermath of one of the deadliest natural disasters in its history, the rescue of Gil offers a brief moment of hope amid the overwhelming loss.