CIVICUS discusses the state’s response to Venezuela’s 24 June earthquakes with volunteers who took part in relief efforts. They have asked to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals.

The two earthquakes caused an official death toll of 6,125, with 16,740 injured and around 24,000 people left homeless. The disaster struck a country where a change in leadership has not brought about real political shift. Following the US government’s abduction of President Nicolás Maduro in January, the regime has remained in power. In the face of the tragedy, the state was absent, and it was civilians who organised rescue and relief efforts.

How did the state respond to the earthquakes?

The state’s response was non-existent and negligent. The first 72 hours are crucial for finding survivors beneath the rubble. During those hours, neither the Bolivarian National Police nor the National Guard were active, either in the capital, Caracas, or in La Guaira, the neighbouring coastal state that was hardest hit.

When they did turn up, it wasn’t to help. They just stood around chatting or looking at their phones and took the food that had been prepared for those who were actually working. They didn’t even call the fire brigade when a building caught fire. We called them ourselves, and firefighters did turn up and help.

The necessary equipment did not arrive. A crane, used to move heavy rubble, turned up eight to 10 days after the earthquakes.

Sadly, this is what we’re used to. We know we can’t rely on the state and that, if something needs to be sorted out, we have to do it ourselves. We knew no one was coming. That’s why we started clearing the rubble with our bare hands.

This meant deaths occurred that could have been prevented. We heard of a mother, father and two daughters aged 13 and 18 from La Guaira who were trapped under the rubble of their building. The mother’s brothers arrived straight away and cleared the rubble for seven hours. They managed to pull the mother out first, but she was struggling to breathe and they sat her down while they continued to search for the rest of the family. She died right there, because medical assistance never arrived.

This is one case among many. The health system was already in crisis and the hospitals were overwhelmed, so many people died due to a lack of care, medicines and supplies. If resources were already lacking under normal conditions, in an emergency on this scale the shortage was extreme.

How were resources used when they arrived?

The aid that finally arrived wasn’t always used to rescue people. We heard of a case where a heavy-duty machine arrived with officials from both security bodies. They cleared the rubble and retrieved a safe. When people asked them for help to continue searching for their relatives, they replied that they were busy and went off to retrieve another safe, although they knew there were people still alive beneath the rubble.

They were not guided by a sense of urgency. The buildings that received the most attention were those where people with some connection to those in power lived, including civil servants, relatives of police officers and people close to the government.

How were volunteer rescue teams treated?

In emergencies such as this, Civil Protection must provide instructions and action plans to volunteer rescue teams. That didn’t happen. The Andean Rescue Group, a volunteer organisation from Mérida, was ready to set out on the day of the earthquake. When it contacted Civil Protection, it was told a meeting would be held two days later to decide what to do.

People were dying and the first few hours were crucial, so the group took matters into its own hands and appealed for donations to secure the tools and transport it needed. By the time it arrived in Caracas and began searching for people, it had still not received a response from Civil Protection.

Something similar happened with international teams. We came across the Brazilian rescue team, which was lost because there was no mobile signal in La Guaira and it couldn’t access a map. That’s how we found out it didn’t have an assigned plan either. It was heading to buildings where people were asking for help on social media. The police, who were nearby and had a Starlink antenna, did not help them find their way. We did that.

What obstacles have those trying to deliver aid faced?

The main obstacle is the National Guard, which often prevents us from delivering food and medicines to people and won’t let us set up collection centres. We know of cases where the National Guard arrived and seized all the supplies, claiming those who had gathered them didn’t have the necessary permits.

Then there are the roadblocks. The National Guard closed the main road between Caracas and La Guaira, fully aware of the number of people travelling on it. When we asked why, they simply replied that these were ‘orders from above’, and they didn’t open a single lane or provide an alternative route. This happens frequently. We set off, wanting to reach a destination, and there are officials blocking the road and forcing us to take a detour, which makes every journey slower.

The clearest example was that of a coastal community that was cut off because landslides had blocked the access road. The people there hadn’t lost their homes or family members, but food and medicines were not reaching them. We organised for them to travel by boat to an accessible point in La Guaira where we would hand over the supplies, but the National Guard wouldn’t let us do that. It wouldn’t allow the handover at the agreed point, so we had to move to another, more distant location, which delayed the aid further.

What happens to people who speak out about the situation?

If you speak out against the government, there are consequences. Even though Maduro has been removed, those left in power are the same people, and psychological terror remains intact. If you’re against them, they’ll do whatever it takes to silence you.

The case of Wilmer Antonio Cruz, known as El Topo de La Guaira, made this clear. El Topo is a civilian who helped rescue dozens of people trapped in buildings, but when he posted a social media video denouncing the fact that the Bolivarian National Police and National Guard were not helping, he was arrested. He was released two days later, thanks to the social media outcry, which generated pressure for his release.

The same applies to the press. Much of what became known about this emergency was documented by foreign journalists, because Venezuelans covering it are at risk. Natural disasters should not be politicised, but with such a poor response and such weak infrastructure, it was inevitable this would happen.

CIVICUS interviews a wide range of civil society activists, experts and leaders to gather diverse perspectives on civil society action and current issues for publication on its CIVICUS Lens platform. The views expressed in interviews are the interviewees’ and do not necessarily reflect those of CIVICUS. Publication does not imply endorsement of interviewees or the organisations they represent.