The Daily Journal.— During an international press conference, a Mexican journalist asked Venezuelan authorities about allegations of structural deficiencies in homes delivered under housing programs launched during the administration of former president Hugo Chávez following the damage caused by the June 24 earthquakes.
The reporter cited testimonies from residents of a housing complex who claimed that the homes “lacked any adequate structural support” and said the government had built them under a social housing program. According to those residents, those conditions contributed to some of the collapses during the twin earthquakes.
In response, Venezuela’s acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, said that “80% of the buildings that collapsed came from private developments.”
“I am not going to place blame on either social housing developments or private projects at this moment,” she added.
Rodríguez explained that the country experienced “two earthquakes of great intensity and severity” only 38 seconds apart, a sequence that increased the impact on buildings.
She added that the epicenter lay closer to the coastal fault zone, a circumstance that prevented greater damage in mountainous areas.
The acting president also said that some preliminary assessments from international organizations underestimated the disaster because they initially expected widespread destruction in hillside neighborhoods. According to Rodríguez, those communities did not experience collapses on the same scale as residential developments built by both the government and private companies.
She said the most severe damage affected private real estate developments and vacation homes, particularly in Caraballeda, Los Corales, and Playa Grande, all located in La Guaira, where a public holiday had drawn larger crowds.
Temporary camps
As part of the emergency response, Rodríguez reported that 46 temporary camps are currently operating and providing assistance to 11,546 people who lost their homes. She also said authorities have implemented a traffic light system to classify the habitability of buildings.
The acting president added that the government has contacted international companies to help equip the temporary camps. She also said that the Prime Minister of Italy has already issued an initial cooperation report on that effort.
