Man who survived two natural disasters in Venezuela’s La Guaira vows to never return
Venezuelan merchant Grian Serrano has survived two of the country’s worst natural disasters: the devastating 1999 mudslides that ravaged the coastal state of La Guaira
Venezuelan merchant Grian Serrano has survived two of the country’s worst natural disasters: the devastating 1999 mudslides that ravaged the coastal state of La Guaira and, 26 years later, two powerful earthquakes that struck the same region. Bruised around his left eye and across much of his body, 46-year-old Mr. Serrano is recovering from the ordeal he endured with his son and mother. The three were buried beneath rubble and twisted steel when their eight-story apartment building collapsed in the city of Caraballeda in La Guaira, the state hardest hit by the magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 earthquakes. “It is a miracle from God,” Mr. Serrano said as he recalled how, in total darkness, he clawed through debris with his bare hands before rescuing his eight-year-old son and 69-year-old mother with the help of two passersby. The two earthquakes have killed more than 1,700 people and injured more than 5,000, according to the government. Hundreds of buildings collapsed or were damaged, primarily in La Guaira.
Significant damage was also reported in the capital, Caracas, and in the states of Carabobo, Miranda, Aragua and Yaracuy. La Guaira — known as Vargas until 2019 — is Venezuela’s second-smallest state but one of its most strategically important. About 30 km north of Caracas, it is home to the country’s main international airport and second-largest seaport. Its roughly 4,40,000 residents are largely low-income and depend on tourism, commerce and jobs tied to the airport and seaport. Speaking from his brother’s home in Caracas, Mr. Serrano recalled the terror he felt last week, his thoughts inevitably returning to December 15, 1999, when he was jolted awake by the screams of their household employee, who had seen a nearby river overflow after days of heavy rain. From his window, he watched the swollen river sweep away trees, massive boulders and vehicles with people trapped inside, banging on the windows and pleading for help. Driven by instinct, Mr. Serrano fled his fourth-floor apartment with his mother, sister and nanny, climbing to the roof.
From there, they watched floodwaters engulf the building’s lower floors as massive trees slammed into its columns, fearing it would collapse like others nearby. Their fears eased at dawn as the rain stopped and the floodwaters began to recede. After waiting in vain for rescue, the family made their way through mud, rocks, debris and fallen trees to his grandparents’ home in a nearby neighbourhood. The 1999 floods and landslides known as the “Vargas Tragedy” killed 782 people, another 2,000 were reported missing and about 2,50,000 residents were affected, according to Ángel Rangel, who led rescue operations as director of Venezuela’s Civil Protection agency. Still shaken by the devastation left by the earthquakes, Mr. Serrano believes La Guaira — bordered by the Caribbean Sea and the Ávila mountain range — is under a curse. “It isn’t normal for such horrible things to happen in the same place,” he said. Rangel, a disaster specialist, sees it differently.
The BriefWire