Cubans Still Missing Over a Week After Devastating Earthquakes in Venezuela

More than a week has passed since the devastating earthquake doublet struck Venezuela on June 24, yet at least 20 Cubans remain unaccounted for and eight have been confirmed dead. This information comes from monitoring by the independent outlet elTOQUE and citizen-initiated search sites in the country.

The powerful earthquakes, measuring 7.2 and 7.5 respectively and occurring just 39 seconds apart, hit the state of La Guaira hardest, home to a significant number of affected Cubans. The Cuban community in the parishes of Caraballeda, Catia La Mar, Macuto, and Naiguatá has suffered the most casualties.

One of the most tragic incidents involves the discovery of a six-member Cuban family found dead on June 29 amid the rubble of the Oasis Beach and Resjurel buildings in Playa Grande. Among the victims were 36-year-old cycling instructor Yadina de la Caridad Yáñez Linares from Sandino, Pinar del Río; her husband Alain Rodríguez Rojas; their six-year-old son Dylan Xander Rodríguez Yáñez; Yadina's mother, Gladys María Linares; and Alain's parents, Raudel Diosdado Rodríguez Cabrera and Teresa Rojas Rodríguez.

Also missing is Dr. Lázara Yumara Villaurrutia Rodríguez, a 35-year-old from Matanzas, along with her Venezuelan husband Juan Simón Leca and their seven-month-old baby Sebastián. They were last seen before the total collapse of their building in Catia La Mar. "Her family is desperate, professor; they know nothing... Her friends and I are desperate," a friend of the doctor stated.

However, there is a glimmer of hope for 10-year-old Dayan Martínez from Mayabeque, who remains trapped inside the Coral Beach building in Los Corales. Rescuers managed to establish contact with him around July 1, confirming he was alive, though extraction efforts were still ongoing.

The list of missing Cubans documented by elTOQUE also includes Ady Zaldívar (64, Caraballeda), Olivia Hernández Pérez (28, psychologist from Havana), Michel Luis Curbelo Moreira (34, physiotherapist), Reinaldo Raspal Interián (62, Catia La Mar), and Aidimir Arriechi (41, mother of two young children, Naiguatá), among others, totaling 21 documented cases.

Cuban Government Response Under Fire

The Cuban regime's response has been severely criticized. On June 27, Ana Teresita González Fraga, Director of Consular Affairs at MINREX, claimed that Cuba had "no official confirmation of citizens injured, deceased, or missing," directly contradicting citizen reports with specific names and locations.

Just two days later, MINREX officially acknowledged the first death — Lupercio Adrian D'Pérez y Pando, who had lived in Caraballeda since 2021 — and provided contact numbers in Cuba and the Venezuelan Consulate.

Affected families have accused the Cuban consulate of negligence and lack of information regarding the repatriation of the deceased. Cuban leader Miguel Díaz-Canel stated on June 28 that he maintained "constant contact with Venezuelan authorities," yet the regime publicly prioritized the safety of its 12,930 healthcare workers, neglecting the plight of Cuban residents in the devastated areas.

Catastrophic Situation in Venezuela

The overall situation in Venezuela is dire. As of July 2, the official toll included 2,295 deaths and over 11,000 injuries, figures that the UN considers significantly underestimated.

The International Rescue Committee estimated up to 50,000 missing people, a figure the UN's Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Tom Fletcher, described as "terrifyingly plausible."

As highlighted by elTOQUE, "with unstable communications, lack of early humanitarian aid, and the burden of distance, Cubans in Venezuela face this tragedy almost entirely on their own."