A resident of Calle Páez, in the Soublette extension of La Guaira state, welcomed the DDHH Vente Venezuela team this Tuesday with a statement that encapsulates the neglect of thousands of families: “No one has come here; you are the first ones to come and check on the houses, even to ask questions”, she said upon seeing the volunteers arrive with supplies, six days after the devastating earthquakes on June 24, 2026.
The organization, affiliated with the Vente Venezuela party of María Corina Machado, toured that popular area of La Guaira to listen to the victims and provide assistance in a region where government presence was nonexistent.
In a second video shared by the same account, the neighbor opened the doors of her home and showed the condition it was left in after the earthquakes: new cracks in the walls and columns, some that already existed and deepened with the tremors.
"This is between bombing and earthquake; this one has deepened more, and this one is the one that worries us the most," the woman said while pointing at the cracks. While showing a fracture in what appears to be a structural column of the bathroom, she cautioned, "I don't know if it's because it has the cut of the column. This one is new. This one was thin. These weren't there."
The testimony illustrates the situation of numerous families in popular areas of La Guaira who have not received technical inspection or assistance from the State since the 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude earthquakes shook northern Venezuela on June 24 at 6:04 PM local time, with just 39 seconds difference between them.
The earthquakes, classified by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) as the most powerful recorded in Venezuela since 1900, resulted in a toll that various sources estimate between 1,719 and 1,943 fatalities, over 5,000 injuries, and nearly 16,000 people affected.
The UN warned that up to 50,000 people may be missing, while NASA estimated that nearly 58,870 buildings were damaged or destroyed in the affected area.
In La Guaira, 250 buildings collapsed, and the José María Vargas Hospital was destroyed. The material damages are estimated at 6.7 billion dollars, equivalent to 6% of Venezuela's GDP.
While civil society and the opposition mobilized to provide assistance directly to those affected, Nicolás Maduro's regime militarized the area with 14,000 troops and established a mandatory accreditation system to enter La Guaira, causing logistical chaos and hindering the passage of volunteers and international rescuers.
Teams like the Spanish Usar13 and American rescuers faced barriers that either prevented them from entering or forced them to turn back due to bureaucratic obstacles, while Venezuelan volunteers on motorcycles partially filled the state void by delivering food, water, and medicines.
This Tuesday, Vice President Delcy Rodríguez promised new homes for those affected before the end of 2026 and announced a structural classification system using colors—green, yellow, and red—to assess the condition of the damaged houses. However, in areas such as Calle Páez, no officials had arrived to inspect the homes when the Vente Venezuela team showed up with supplies.
"Being here also means supporting, listening, and not leaving people alone," wrote DDHH Vente Venezuela when publishing the neighbor's testimony.
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