The rescue operation in Caracas entered its third day with little hope of finding more survivors. At least 42 people are now confirmed dead after the collapse of a 12-storey residential block in the working-class neighbourhood of La Vega. Dozens remain missing.
The official narrative, delivered by state television, has focused on the heroism of rescue workers and the swift response of the government. But on the ground, a different story is emerging. Survivors and relatives of the missing have begun to accuse the state of criminal negligence.
They claim residents had been complaining for months about structural cracks, water leaks and the smell of gas. One woman, whose sister is buried under the debris, told this correspondent that a formal complaint was lodged with the local housing authority last November. No action was taken.
The government has denied any prior knowledge of structural problems. President Nicolás Maduro, in a brief televised address, blamed the collapse on 'years of imperialist sanctions' that had starved the country of construction materials and maintenance funds. This explanation has been met with scepticism.
Venezuela's infrastructure has been in a state of advanced decay for a decade, but the collapse of a single building in a neighbourhood that has seen no recent seismic activity points to more specific failures. Investigators have not yet been granted access to the site. The rescue operation is being led by military engineers and the Civil Protection authority, both loyal to the ruling party.
Independent observers, including engineers from the Central University of Venezuela, have been turned away. The implications are grave. If the allegations of ignored warnings prove true, this will not be an accident.
It will be a slow-moving disaster that the state chose not to prevent. And in a country where trust in institutions has long since crumbled, this tragedy risks accelerating the unraveling of the last vestiges of social contract between the government and the governed. As night falls, the dig continues.
Floodlights illuminate the pile of concrete and twisted steel. Every so often, a shout goes up, and the work stops. But more and more, what they find are bodies.
