A two-year-old child has been pulled alive from the rubble of a collapsed apartment block in Caracas, six days after a devastating earthquake struck Venezuela's capital. British search and rescue teams, deployed within hours of the disaster, were hailed by local officials as instrumental in the operation. The toddler, identified locally as Maria Gutierrez, was found dehydrated but conscious in a pocket of air beneath a concrete slab.
Medics on site described her condition as 'remarkably stable'. The rescue came as the official death toll climbed past 2,100, with thousands still missing. UK International Search and Rescue teams, part of a multinational effort, have been working around the clock in the hardest-hit neighbourhoods.
'We never gave up hope,' said team leader Inspector Claire Morrison of the London Fire Brigade. 'Every hour counts, and the training we do for urban collapse scenarios paid off today.' The British government has pledged £5 million in emergency aid, with additional supplies of water purification tablets and field hospitals en route.
For families still waiting, the rescue offers a glimmer of hope in a city buried under grief.
