A month after the double earthquake that devastated northern Venezuela, 38 bodies of children and adolescents remain unclaimed in a morgue set up in La Guaira state, according to a statement from the Ministry of Interior, Justice, and Peace published on Wednesday.
The National Service of Medicine and Forensic Sciences (Senamecf) called on families who have not yet located their children to come to the Bolipuertos Los Silos headquarters in La Guaira, the state most affected by the earthquakes of magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 on June 24, 2026.
The identification process includes photographic verification along with anthropological and dental expertise.
According to the official statement, "family members must appear to facilitate the processes of photographic verification and the necessary anthropological and odontological expertise," all with "the respect and sensitivity that the situation warrants."
On Tuesday, Senamecf had already taken a preliminary step by calling for voluntary DNA sample collection to identify the deceased in general, with the aim of "achieving the identification of the victims through scientific comparisons of genetic profiles and providing certainty and peace to the families," according to information from the EFE agency.
The official toll of the earthquakes has risen to 5,398 dead, in addition to 16,740 injured and 17,907 people who have lost their homes.
Venezuelan authorities do not provide official figures for the missing, but the citizen initiative "Desaparecidos Terremoto Venezuela" recorded 29,500 people as missing as of Thursday.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs handled unconfirmed figures in June that placed the number of missing persons at up to 50,000.
The victims who have not been identified were buried in a municipal cemetery in the state of La Guaira.
Meanwhile, the National Civil Protection Directorate denied this Thursday the news spread that morning about alleged rescues of survivors at the OPP26 structure in the Caraballeda parish, calling it "completely false," and urged the public not to share rumors "that play with the hope of Venezuelan families."
The organization assured that its teams remain deployed on the ground "full-time" and that they will not stop "the search and rescue efforts until every possible avenue in the affected area has been exhausted."
The World Bank estimated the direct material damages at 19.6 billion dollars, with housing being the most affected category, representing 47% of the total.
Related videos:
Filed under: