Fabio Ignacio Bastardo Navarro, a nine-year-old Venezuelan boy, has been trapped under the rubble of the Tahití Residences in Caraballeda, La Guaira state, since the double earthquake on June 24. This Friday, rescue teams deployed thermal drones and search dogs to assess the chances of bringing him out alive.
According to the agency EFE, a group of Spanish rescuers conducted tests using thermal technology from the air while other specialists employed trained dogs to detect signs of life beneath the rubble of the 12-story tower that collapsed in that coastal town in northern Venezuela.
The minor is located about six meters from the rescuers, who are from El Salvador and Argentina, among other countries. The formal rescue operation began at 11:00 PM on Wednesday, July 1, according to Civil Protection.
What keeps hope alive is the direct testimony of the family. Rebeca, the child's grandmother, stated that last Sunday Fabio responded to calls with a whistle, and that on the morning of this Friday they heard noises that seemed like knocks coming from the rubble. Venezuelan rescuers also affirmed that they had sensed signs of life.
Before the professional teams arrived on Sunday, the family was left alone digging through the rubble of the building. "Alone" was the word the grandmother used to describe those first days of anguish.
Venezuelan journalist Román Camacho reported at 1:00 AM this Friday that at that moment only family members and Venezuelan volunteers remained at the site, as the international teams had temporarily withdrawn.
Hours earlier, at 7:28 PM on Thursday, he announced: "There is life, there is still hope. Rescue teams are beginning efforts to bring out a child and two other people alive from the Tahití residences."
Fabio's father's situation is heart-wrenching. In addition to waiting for his son's rescue, he had to deal with false information: an influencer and some journalists claimed that the boy had already been rescued, which forced him to return to the site to verify that it was a lie. His eldest son was saved because that day he had gone to do homework with ten friends, all of whom were unscathed.
It is suspected that a deceased person, allegedly his mother, is with Fabio. A rescuer also pointed out that there could be at least six more people under the rubble of the Tahití.
The operation faces a critical obstacle: the building's structure is severely weakened, and the teams are working to secure it before they can proceed. The rescuers themselves acknowledge that "this could take a while."
The case of Fabio arises one day after the successful rescue of Hernán Alberto Gil Flores, a 43-year-old security guard who was pulled to safety on Thursday after spending eight days trapped under the rubble of a shopping center in Catia La Mar, in an operation lasting over 72 hours with teams from seven countries. This rescue, the 13th accomplished by international teams since the onset of the tragedy, filled those affected with hope.
However, experts warn that the chances of finding survivors decrease as hours go by.
The double earthquake on June 24 - with magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5, occurring just 39 seconds apart - has resulted in an official toll of at least 2,595 dead and 12,400 injured, according to Venezuelan authorities.
The UN reports figures of up to 50,000 missing nationwide, with La Guaira as the epicenter of the devastation and over 100 buildings collapsed in that area.
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