A dramatic video circulating on social media on Friday captured the emotional rescue, showing emergency workers using floodlights as they searched through the debris before carefully bringing the infant to safety. The baby, wrapped in a quilt, was gently passed from one rescuer to another as onlookers applauded the remarkable rescue. Rescue workers were later seen carefully cleaning the child with tissues.
According to Andreina Quintero, who shared the footage online, the infant was only 18 days old and survived the 32-hour ordeal without suffering any injuries.
The baby’s mother had also been rescued from the collapsed building about an hour after her child was found. In a follow-up video shared later on Friday, she was seen receiving treatment in a hospital, where a medical worker informed her that the baby showed no signs of injury.
The medic suggested that the child’s survival may have been due to the mother’s efforts to shield the baby with her body or another protective object during the collapse.
The rescue comes amid the massive humanitarian crisis triggered by the twin earthquakes, which struck Venezuela on Wednesday with magnitudes of 7.2 and 7.5. At least 920 people have been confirmed dead, while thousands more have been injured or remain unaccounted for.
The United Nations warned on Saturday that the scale of the disaster could be far greater, estimating that as many as 6.76 million people may have been affected by the earthquakes.
In a statement, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) said its assessment of population and damage data indicated that up to 6.76 million people, including nearly two million residents of Caracas, could be impacted by the disaster.
The agency noted that the figures underscore the enormous humanitarian consequences of the earthquakes, which have left widespread destruction across affected communities.
La Guaira, located north of the capital Caracas, is among the worst-hit areas, with entire buildings reduced to rubble following the devastating twin tremors.