A mother in Venezuela died protecting her young daughter as a building collapsed in the latest aftershock to hit the crisis-stricken country. The tragedy has prompted a British fundraising drive as aid groups warn of a growing humanitarian catastrophe.
Witnesses said the woman, in her 30s, threw herself over her child when the structure gave way in the working-class neighbourhood of Petare, a sprawling hillside slum on the outskirts of Caracas. Rescuers pulled the girl alive from the debris. The mother did not survive.
“She is a hero. She gave her life for her daughter,” said Maria Fernanda Rodriguez, a neighbour who heard the screams and ran to help. “This is what we live with every day. No water, no electricity, no hospitals. Now even the ground is not safe.”
The collapse came after a series of tremors that have rattled the country’s crumbling infrastructure. Venezuela’s economy has been in freefall for years, with hyperinflation leaving millions unable to afford food or medicine. Buildings, poorly maintained and often built without proper permits, are increasingly dangerous.
In Britain, a group of Venezuelan expatriates and supporters have launched an emergency appeal to raise funds for immediate relief. The campaign, coordinated by the UK-based charity “Venezuela Aid” and supported by diaspora networks in London and Manchester, aims to collect £100,000 in the first week.
“We cannot stand by while mothers die trying to protect their children,” said Carlos Mendez, the charity’s director and a former electrical engineer who fled the country four years ago. “Every pound raised goes directly to buying food, water, and medical supplies. We are working with local community groups on the ground to distribute aid.”
The appeal has been endorsed by several British trade unions, including Unite and the GMB, who have pledged matching funds. “This is what solidarity looks like,” said Sharon Graham, Unite’s general secretary. “Working people in Britain know what it is to struggle, but Venezuela’s crisis is on another level. We have a duty to help.”
The funds will be used to purchase emergency kits containing basic necessities such as rice, beans, cooking oil, and hygiene products. The charity is also planning to charter a plane filled with medical supplies once the first target is met.
The tragedy has shone a light on the wider situation in Venezuela, where more than 7 million people have left the country since 2014. Those who remain face chronic shortages of everything from insulin to bread. The cost of living has soared, with the minimum wage covering barely a fraction of basic needs.
“You cannot understand the desperation unless you have seen it,” said Julia Hernandez, a nurse who works in a free clinic in Caracas. “We run out of gloves, we run out of paracetamol. People are dying from infections that should be treatable. This mother’s death is a symbol of what is happening every day.”
The British government has faced criticism for not doing more to help. Former foreign secretary David Lammy called for an “urgent review” of the UK’s response, while the Conservative chair of the foreign affairs committee has pressed ministers to increase humanitarian aid. Downing Street has so far declined to comment on the latest appeal.
For the family of the woman who died, there is little time for politics. The daughter, who is being cared for by relatives, is said to be recovering physically but traumatised. “She keeps asking for her mother,” Rodriguez said. “We tell her that her mother is an angel now. But she is only a child. What does she understand?”
The fundraising link is: www.venezuelaaid.org.uk/emergency.
