The earth shifted beneath the rubble of Cúcuta. A mother’s body was found shielding her daughter. The girl survived.
The news arrived at dawn on Tuesday, carried by the same aftershocks that have rattled Venezuela for 48 hours. The quake, a 7.3 magnitude tremor that struck at 11:15 pm local time on Monday, has claimed at least 42 lives and left thousands homeless.
Among them were María Elena Rojas, 34, and her five-year-old daughter, Sofia. Rescue workers discovered them in the ruins of their apartment block in the working-class neighbourhood of Los Teques. Maria’s back was arched over Sofia’s small frame.
Her arms were wrapped around the child’s head. Sofia was found unconscious but alive, with only minor cuts and bruises. Her mother had absorbed the full weight of a collapsing concrete beam.
‘She made the ultimate sacrifice,’ said Dr. Ana Lucía Méndez, a triage volunteer at the field hospital set up in the Plaza Bolívar. ‘We see it often in these disasters.
A parent’s instinct is to cover their child. But this was different. She must have seen it coming and made a choice.
’ The tragedy has sharpened the focus on the international response, led by a UK-based team from the International Rescue Corps (IRC). They arrived in Caracas within eight hours of the quake, bringing 60 tonnes of equipment and 45 specialists in urban search and rescue. ‘The UK team has been a lifeline,’ said Venezuelan Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello in a televised address.
‘Their expertise and discipline are saving lives.’ But the praise sits uneasily against the backdrop of a country already in crisis. Hyperinflation, fuel shortages, and a collapsed healthcare system had left many vulnerable before the ground shook.
In the barrios of Los Teques, families now queue for water from tankers donated by the UK team. ‘We are grateful, but we also feel abandoned by our own government,’ said Julio Rojas, Maria’s brother. ‘She was a single mother, working two jobs to keep food on the table.
Now she is gone, and her daughter is an orphan.’ The UK’s Foreign Office confirmed that it had contributed £2.5 million in aid, with a focus on shelter and medical supplies.
But the government has been criticised for not doing enough to address the root causes of the crisis. ‘Charity is not a substitute for policy,’ said Dr. Hannah Jones, a disaster relief expert at the University of Manchester.
‘When a state collapses, the international community steps in. But the real work is political. The UK should be pushing for a negotiated settlement, not just sending blankets.
’ In the meantime, the rescue teams continue their grim work. The death toll is expected to rise as crews dig through the debris of schools, hospitals, and apartment blocks. For Sofia Rojas, the future is uncertain.
She is being cared for by a neighbour, while her aunt in Spain tries to arrange a visa. Her mother’s body will be buried in a mass grave unless she can claim it. ‘She was a hero,’ said Julio Rojas, holding a worn photograph of his sister.
‘But heroes don’t pay the rent.’ The UK-led rescue teams will remain in Venezuela for at least two more weeks. They have promised to stay until every survivor is found.
But for families like the Rojas, the search has already ended. The question now is what comes after the cameras leave.
