It was immediately evident that a major disaster had impacted the port town of La Guaira. When I arrived the morning after the earthquakes struck Venezuela, I found a massive pile of debris where apartments once stood.
“No,” a volunteer rescuer said. “This is just the first mountain. There is more.” The destruction was so extensive, with the terrain flattened, that finding a vantage point was impossible. Only days later did drone images partially reveal the full extent of the devastation.
OPPE 26 is a public housing project built years ago under Hugo Chávez’s government. Many residents moved there after losing their homes in the 1999 mudslides. Now, La Guaira is believed to have suffered the worst damage. Given the high population at OPPE 26, this housing project may be among the gravest casualties.
Initially, a somber atmosphere hung over the scene. With minimal outside help and no heavy equipment, the surroundings were silent except for the sounds of residents using basic tools to search for loved ones in the rubble. Bodies were pulled out and laid on the ground, often covered by blankets.
Oswaldo Tovar, 45, used a small hammer to dig a hole big enough to locate his wife and daughter. He couldn’t free them. He sat beside them as we spoke, awaiting assistance. Tovar shared that his wife’s name was Ivonne Ladera, aged 46. His daughter was 8. When asked her name, he couldn’t respond.
Photos by Adriana Loureiro Fernandez. Written by Eric Nagourney. Drone piloting by Andres Conde.
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