A two-year-old child was pulled from the rubble of a collapsed building in Caracas six days after the 7.2 magnitude earthquake that struck Venezuela on Tuesday, as British humanitarian assistance began arriving in the region. The rescue, which occurred in the hard-hit neighbourhood of El Valle, was confirmed by the Venezuelan civil protection authority.
The child, whose name has not been released, was airlifted to a field hospital operated by Médecins Sans Frontières in the capital. The operation came as the first tranche of a £5 million UK aid package, comprising medical supplies, water purification equipment and search-and-rescue teams, touched down at Simón Bolívar International Airport. Officials from the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office said the deployment was coordinated with the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
The earthquake, which struck at a depth of 10 kilometres, has killed at least 350 people and injured more than 2,000, according to the latest official figures. The government of President Nicolás Maduro has declared a state of emergency in five states. International rescue teams from Mexico, Chile and Spain are also on the ground.
The survival of the toddler after 144 hours underscores the possibility of further rescues. However, aid workers caution that the window for finding survivors is narrowing. The UK, which has no diplomatic relations with Venezuela, has stressed that its assistance is purely humanitarian.
