More than 24 hours after the earthquake struck Venezuela, La Guaria resident Cesar Valecillos continues to search for his brother Carlos Perdomo, believing he may be trapped in one of several collapsed buildings in the Urbanismo Hugo Chavez housing complex in Catia la Mar, a city just west of Caracas’s main international airport.
Vallecillo said the private security forces had not yet sent a rescue team and family members and neighbors were trying to clear the debris themselves.
“The authorities were not prepared for these injuries and deaths,” Vallecilos told CNN. “We are receiving some assistance, but it is our understanding that (the earthquake) was so large that assistance is completely saturated.”
Valencilos, whose home in the same complex was also destroyed, is currently staying with relatives who are also helping in the search for his brother.
Maribel Sanchez, the brothers’ aunt, added that Perdomo’s exact location is unknown because the last known location on his cellphone came from a nearby building that also collapsed.
Valencijos acknowledged that his country was simply unprepared to deal with large-scale natural disasters, and said he blamed no one in particular for the extensive damage or delays in aid.
“This wasn’t a building issue, it wasn’t a construction issue, it wasn’t a safety issue. It was just the whole city coming down at once,” he said. “It destroyed everything for us, and there was no way to prevent this.”
