SPAIN PERSPECTIVE

Madrid, July 4, 2026. One week after the devastating earthquakes hit Venezuela, Spain is counting its dead and missing in a catastrophe that is not just far away. Twenty-six Spanish nationals are among the 2,595 officially recorded victims, while the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirms that 150 Spaniards remain missing and 12 others are still trapped under the rubble.

The double earthquake — with magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5 — ravaged La Guaira and several neighborhoods of Caracas on June 24. One week later, the port of La Guaira has been transformed into a makeshift morgue where dozens of coffins are piling up along the coast as forensic teams work to identify the victims. In the devastated city, a McDonald's has been converted into a field hospital by volunteer doctors, operating by the light of their colleagues' cell phones in temperatures over 40°C. This symbol of improvisation and institutional abandonment sums up the first week of a catastrophe described as the worst to hit Venezuela in over a century.

Spanish search and rescue teams are among the international brigades continuing to operate, alongside teams from the UK, among others. According to the UN, some 3,000 rescuers from 33 countries are deployed on the ground. Their efforts have allowed 6,462 people to be pulled out alive, including a security guard, Hernán Alberto Gil Flores, extracted after eight days under the rubble of a collapsed shopping center — a case that explains why teams persist despite exhaustion.

The crisis management by Venezuelan authorities is at the center of a sharp political controversy. Vice President Delcy Rodríguez has defended the government's response, blaming the initial chaos on "media laboratories" and claiming an emergency decree was issued in the first hours. However, Jorge Rodríguez, president of the National Assembly, has himself mentioned a death toll that could reach 10,000, far exceeding the official figure of 2,295. The UN estimates that around 42,000 people are missing.

The diasporic dimension of the catastrophe goes beyond Venezuela's borders. In the United States, Venezuelan workers have been arrested by ICE in Washington during immigration operations that have not been suspended despite the tragedy. The Venezuelan community is calling for the reinstatement of TPS status for some 600,000 migrants threatened with expulsion to a devastated country. In Spain, where historical ties with Venezuela are deep, the catastrophe is mobilizing civil solidarity and concern among many families.