The death toll from the double earthquake in Venezuela increases to more than 5,300
The Government of Venezuela called for the voluntary taking of DNA samples to identify those who died in the double earthquake
The death toll from the double earthquake of magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 that occurred almost a month ago in the northern part of Venezuela rose to 5,346, after the authorities added 68 deaths, reported the president of the National Assembly, Jorge Rodríguez.
The injured remain at 16,740 and the homeless at 17,907, indicates the balance disseminated on the Telegram account of the also brother of the president in charge, Delcy Rodríguez.
Likewise, there are 23,122 people in 107 temporary camps, while 128,324 families have been assisted by the authorities.
In addition, this disaster left some 856 buildings affected and 190 collapsed, according to the official balance, which also registers 1,405 aftershocks since the double earthquake on June 24.
On Monday, more than 240 families received the first homes delivered by the Government to those affected by the earthquakes, announced Delcy Rodríguez, who led the delivery of the apartments.
This Tuesday, the Government of Venezuela called for the voluntary taking of DNA samples to identify those who died from the double earthquake.
Relatives who know or have indications that their loved ones are in morgues in La Guaira, the state most devastated by the earthquakes, or in Bello Monte, Caracas, were called to undergo these tests to begin an identification process, according to a statement from the National Service of Medicine and Forensic Sciences (Senamecf) and the Ministry of the Interior.
The objective is “to achieve the identification of the victims through scientific comparisons of genetic profiles and provide certainty and peace to the families,” adds the statement, published on Instagram by the Ministry of the Interior.
The Venezuelan authorities do not offer figures for the missing, but the citizen initiative 'Desparecidos Terremoto Venezuela', a website where people whose whereabouts are unknown after the earthquakes are reported, registers 29,500 people who have not been able to be contacted.
The number of those missing from the earthquakes could rise to 50,000, according to unconfirmed figures received by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs last June.
Unidentified victims of the double earthquake are being buried in several recently opened graves in a municipal cemetery in the state of La Guaira, several witnesses told EFE earlier this month.