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The Cuban government has acknowledged the death of a compatriot in Venezuela as a consequence of the devastating earthquakes on June 24, according to a statement by Ana Teresita González Fraga, the general director of Consular Affairs and Assistance to Cubans Residing Abroad at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MINREX), in a post shared on Facebook.
The victim was named Lupercio Adrian D’Pérez y Pando, who according to his Facebook profile had been residing since 2021 in the city of Caraballeda, in the state of Vargas.
The official extended her condolences to family and friends.
"We continue tirelessly in the search for information with Venezuelan authorities, the Association of Cubans, our collaborators, and other organizations to confirm other compatriots who have died or are missing," he added.
The MINREX has activated the phone number 7 8321484 so that relatives in Cuba can report on the situation of their loved ones in the South American country.
"Cubans residing in Venezuela can do so through the phones of the Cuban Consulate: 02129914635 / 04123332625," concludes the post.
This official recognition comes days after MINREX itself denied having information about those affected.
Last Saturday, González Fraga herself stated: "So far, we do not have official confirmation of compatriots injured, deceased, or missing," a stance that contradicted citizen reports that had already documented more than 30 missing Cubans.
The confirmation of this death comes after families have already taken matters into their own hands.
On June 27, relatives confirmed the discovery of the lifeless body of the Cuban girl Vanessa Martínez, originally from Melena del Sur, Mayabeque, along with her cousin, both residents of the Coral Beach building in Los Corales, in the state of La Guaira.
Vanessa's brother, Dayan Martínez, remains missing under the rubble of that very building. The two minors lived with their father, a Cuban doctor who chose to stay in Venezuela after completing an official mission; their mother resides in Cuba.
More Cubans are still missing. A family of at least six members -including Alain Rodríguez Rojas, Teresa Rojas Rodríguez, and four other relatives- remains missing in the Oasis Beach and Resjurel buildings in La Guaira.
Also being sought is Doctor Lázara Yumara Villaurrutia Rodríguez, 35 years old and originally from Matanzas, along with her husband and their seven-month-old baby, following the collapse of the Cumanagoto building.
Among the missing is also Lupercio Pérez, a 55-year-old Cuban, reported in the Costa Caribe area since June 24, according to the citizen platform Encuéntralos. Other cases include Ady Zaldívar (64 years old), Olivia Hernández Pérez (28 years old, psychologist), Michel Luis Curbelo Moreira (34 years old, physiotherapist), and Arístides Peralta Pérez (58 years old, boxing coach), among several others.
The double seismic event with magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5, centered in the state of Yaracuy, is the most powerful recorded in Venezuela since 1900, according to the United States Geological Survey. The official Venezuelan toll stands at least 1,450 dead and more than 3,238 injured, while the UN estimates up to 50,000 missing across the country.
Cuba sent a Special Rescue and Recovery Brigade to join the international efforts, which involve more than 25 teams from 17 countries. MINREX has set up the phone number 7 8321484 for families in Cuba to report on the situation of their loved ones in Venezuela.
The platform Encuéntralos registered 77,913 people unlocated throughout the country this Monday, a figure that reflects the magnitude of a disaster that has yet to show its worst face.
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