Dayán Martínez, a 10-year-old Cuban boy from Melena del Sur, Mayabeque province, remains trapped under the rubble of the Coral Beach building in Los Corales, La Guaira state, but in recent hours his family received the first encouraging news in nearly a week: the rescuers managed to communicate with him and confirmed that he is alive along with his friend Samuel.
The confirmation came through Carleyns Kaina, a relative of the minor, according to reports from Telemundo 51.
"The correct information is that the children have been found, meaning they have already spoken with them and know that it is Dayán and Samuel. Thank God they found another way to reach them."
Both minors have been trapped in the basement of the collapsed building for almost a week, since the two earthquakes on June 24 -with magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5 and separated by just 39 seconds- destroyed dozens of buildings in La Guaira.
Mexican moles join the rescue
This Tuesday, the so-called "Mexican moles," experts in urban rescue, arrived at the site to enhance the extraction efforts.
In a video circulated on social media, a person can be heard saying: "Here come the moles from Mexico, the one over there is the head mole, who came for the rescue of the children."
The rescuers also identified a new access route to the basement that had not been explored, which opens up concrete possibilities to reach the two minors.
The family believes that Dayán went down to the basement at the moment of the earthquake, as the boy was playing with other children in the lobby when the tremor occurred.
According to the uncle of the minor's wife, “they came to a conclusion that they were trapped in a shell-like structure in the basement, and that it protected them.”
Obstacles that have hindered the rescue
The path to the children has been fraught with complications from day one.
A French team with tracking dogs descended about 17 meters deep due to the smell of decomposing bodies, unable to move closer to where the minors are located.
A magnitude 4.6 tremor recorded on Monday forced the suspension of operations for at least three hours due to protocols that prevent entry while seismic activity is occurring.
At various times, the family reported that there was no active equipment in the building.
The father of Dayán stated publicly: "There is nobody there."
The child's uncle's wife also reported that American rescuers detected signs of life, but that the minors "were asking for oxygen because they seemed a bit weak, understandably, since it's been from Wednesday until today."
The Tragedy of the Martínez Family
Dayán's case is framed within a devastating family tragedy.
On June 27, the death of Vanessa Martínez, the child's sister, and her cousin Ivana was confirmed; they were also trapped in the same building. Their father is a Cuban doctor who completed an official mission in Venezuela and decided to stay in the country; the mother resides in Cuba.
From the island, grandmother Isolina Dávila has made desperate public appeals:
"They say they are alive, that they are alive, how can we continue to delay? Those children have already been missing for almost five days. Please, what more are they going to keep waiting for? It's the only thing I have."
In another heartbreaking testimony, the grandmother expressed: “We have already lost two granddaughters. Dayán is the only grandson we have left.”
Cubans missing in Venezuela
According to unofficial reports, at least 21 Cubans are still missing following the earthquakes, concentrated in Caraballeda, Catia La Mar, and Los Corales.
At least eight Cubans are reported to have died, although the regime only officially confirmed the death of three citizens.
On June 29, a Cuban family of six was found dead in the Oasis Beach and Resjurel buildings, in Playa Grande.
The overall balance of the earthquake as of June 30 reached 1,943 deceased and over 10,571 injured, while the UN estimated up to 50,000 missing across the country.
As the family anxiously awaits the moment when rescuers can make their way to the basement of Coral Beach, the child's uncle's wife insists:
"There is life there. Because they shouted. I have the videos of when they shout and a lady hears them, knowing they are alive."
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