After 74 hours of uninterrupted search among collapsed structures, the death of the family of Argentine soccer player Lucas Trejo was confirmed in one of the areas affected by the earthquakes that hit northern Venezuela. The information put an end to days of expectation and mobilization that had brought together neighbors, volunteers and rescue teams around the building where the victims remained trapped.

Trejo, forward for Club Sport Marítimo and former player for Zacatepec in Mexico, was in Caracas playing a match with his team when the earthquakes occurred on June 24. Upon returning to La Guaira he discovered that the Cumanagoto building, located in Playa Grande and where his wife Yanina and his children Aarón and Ainhoa ​​lived, had completely collapsed.

During the days after the disaster, the footballer remained in the area closely following the search efforts and asking for support to accelerate debris removal operations. According to widespread reports, there was even temporary participation of Salvadoran rescuers in the operation.

Hope remained for hours due to some evidence found at the scene and the fact that the family's vehicle was still parked inside the residential complex.

Days before the outcome, José Luis Trejo had recounted the moment his son was going through. "Lucas told his mother that it is destroyed. When he returned from playing in Caracas he found the building completely collapsed," he explained.

A tragedy that hits thousands of families

Trejo's case became one of the most visible faces of the humanitarian emergency that Venezuela is going through after the double earthquake of magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 registered on Wednesday.

Neighbors, relatives, journalists, volunteers and rescue organizations mobilized to try to locate the building's occupants alive. The search maintained attention in both Venezuela and Argentina due to the Córdoba soccer player's link with the sports community.

According to the most recent balance released in Caracas, the number of fatalities amounts to at least 1,430 people. In addition, 3,238 injured and 3,142 families affected as a result of the disaster are reported.

The UN International Organization for Migration indicated on Friday, through its spokesperson Zoe Brennan, that up to 6.76 million people could have been affected by the earthquakes.

In parallel, a preliminary satellite assessment prepared using the Rapid Digital Analysis (RAPIDA) system of the United Nations Development Program estimated that damage to homes, vehicles, buildings, businesses and other economic assets would reach about 6.7 billion dollars.

The confirmation of the death of Lucas Trejo's family adds to a tragedy that continues to leave new figures and rescue operations while work progresses among the rubble in different areas of the country.