Andrea Canonico, 23, tried to stay calm while trapped under the rubble of a collapsed building for nearly 48 hours after two powerful earthquakes struck Venezuela last week. Rescuers eventually pulled her out alive.
A resident of the Los Corales area of La Guaira, the worst-hit city, Canonico told news agency AFP: “I never lost hope.” However, her 20-year-old brother and 91-year-old aunt remain missing.
The two earthquakes measuring 7.2 and 7.5 on the Richter scale struck last Wednesday, killing nearly 2,000 people so far. The death toll is feared to rise further.
With bandages wrapped around her hands, Canonico said she told herself while trapped under the rubble: “I will fall asleep.”
She added: “I told myself, I am in the middle of a terrible disaster right now. There will surely be more tremors. I will stay calm and not panic.”
She said that although she was buried under approximately six meters of debris, she was able to remain in a sitting position. Having her mobile phone with her helped her keep track of time and provided some light.
Canonico said she was able to communicate with another person trapped slightly above her. After that person was rescued, they informed the rescue workers that someone else was still alive below.
“There was a gap above me through which I was able to climb up. Then I reached the path the rescuers were creating and slowly climbed up. They pulled me out and I was able to emerge,” she said.
Meanwhile, 26-year-old former miner Moises Faramaya has been working tirelessly in the same area searching for survivors among the ruins. Shouting into the rubble, he calls out: “Is anyone alive in here?”
Faramaya said he has so far rescued 16 people alive and recovered 22 bodies in La Guaira. Authorities have declared the area a “disaster zone.”
“I heard one person scratching at the wall. They were trapped but could move their hands. We were later able to rescue them alive,” he said.
Faramaya said he uses only a pickaxe and a shovel to clear debris. His six years of experience working in mines in the El Callao region of Bolivar state have made him skilled at this work. Fire brigade crews and specialists also seek his assistance in rescue operations.
Known as “The Mole,” Faramaya said he has been continuing rescue work with almost no food or sleep.
“This work is not easy. You have to work amid dust and the smell of decomposing bodies. But we keep trying,” he said.
Authorities recently declared that everyone in Canonico’s building had died.
Alexander Garcia, 44, a restaurant worker, said he heard firefighters announce “Code 14,” meaning no more survivors were present.
But after a US rescue team and Spanish-trained search dogs detected signs of life, hope was rekindled that Garcia’s two brothers trapped in the rubble might be found alive.
“Everyone heard their voices, everyone,” Garcia said. His mother was pulled alive from the rubble but later died.
Rescue operations continued into the night by torchlight. However, heavy rain on Tuesday morning hampered the work.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report