Earthquake...

Medics struggling to reach patients and residents terrified to return home, aid groups say

By Sharon Braithwaite and Charlotte Reck

As the official death toll rises following Wednesday night’s colossal twin quake disaster in Venezuela, and anxiety about the whereabouts of loved ones persists, aid organizations fear millions more are in dire need.

Here’s the latest from United Nations agencies and partners on the ground:

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) estimates up to 6.8 million people have been affected by the deadly quakes, a figure based on the latest available population and damage projections.

In addition to emergency medical care, people “who have lost everything” need temporary shelter, safe water, sanitation, healthcare, protection and essential relief items, said Zoe Brennan from the IOM. Later, the recovery will need to be sustained “to help families rebuild their homes, restore livelihoods and recover with dignity,” she said.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), a UN partner, said rescuers are digging with their bare hands in some quake-hit centers to save those trapped beneath the rubble of collapsed buildings and homes.

People “are still terrified to re-enter what were their homes or other structures,” the organization said.

Another IFRC spokesperson, Loyce Pace, said citizens who have lost everything are facing institutional challenges: “People left everything and nothing is functioning as it should, or as it has, in these areas,” she told journalists in Geneva via video from Panama City.

The health emergencies director for the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the Regional Office for the UN World Health Organization, described medical teams under pressure to triage mass casualties and provide trauma care for broken bones, burns and other injuries associated with buildings collapsing, particularly in areas where search and rescue operations are ongoing.

Dr. Ciro Ugarte said reaching hospitals, homes and those in need remains “very difficult” for teams working on the ground, who are clambering through rubble and debris to deliver vital treatment.