More than 150 unidentified bodies were buried in a large row of individual graves in a cemetery in Venezuelaafter the earthquakes that hit the country on June 24 and left more than 3,000 dead.
The two powerful earthquakes of magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 caused the collapse of several buildings in Caracas and They devastated the neighboring state of La Guaira, where residents are still trying to recover the bodies of their loved ones buried under the rubble.
According to the latest official balance released on Sunday by the authorities, The earthquakes have killed at least 3,342 people, while 16,740 were injured.
In the municipality of Catia La Mar, in La Guaira, a group of men worked with backhoes to open trenches in a secluded area of dry land in the local cemetery of La Esperanza.
This aerial view shows the plots containing the graves of unidentified people, victims of the two earthquakes, at the La Esperanza cemetery in Catia La Mar, La Guaira state, northeast of Caracas, on July 5, 2026. (Miguel MEDINA / AFP).
/ MIGUEL MEDINA
Eli Zavala, a resident of the town, told AFP that the day after the earthquakes they began to make the graves “so that all those people would have decent burials.”
The burials “are numbered by plots and also by the code” defined so that unidentified bodies can be located by their relatives.
The authorities also took photographs of each of these bodies before they were buried.
The rectangles are delimited with white stones. In each grave there is a small bouquet of flowers at the foot of an austere white cross, with a plaque that It bears the inscription “Special Identification” and the date of death, June 24, 2026.
This aerial view shows excavators digging rows of graves to bury victims of the June 24 earthquake at the La Esperanza cemetery, in Catia La Mar, La Guaira state, northeast of Caracas. (Photo by Miguel MEDINA / AFP).
/ MIGUEL MEDINA
The magnitude of the disaster has exceeded the capacity of morgues and hospitals. An improvised warehouse to store the bodies was set up this week in the silos of the port of La Guaira.
In the midst of tragedy, Venezuelans celebrate their independence day this July 5.
In an event that was carried out with the flag of Venezuela at half mast, President Delcy Rodríguez ruled out a social outbreak, given the claims of those affected.
“There will be no social outbreak, what there is here is deep social solidarity of our people,” said Rodriguezwhich considered power after the capture of Nicolás Maduro at the beginning of the year in a United States operation.
In the area devastated by the earthquake, many residents expressed to AFP their indignation at the actions of the authorities.
The population attended funeral masses on Sunday in all the country’s churches and the lighting of candles in various places is expected at night.
In La Guaira, residents continue trying to recover bodies from rubble in increasingly difficult conditions.
“This is horrible (…), but I’m not moving from here because I know he’s there. I found his motorcycle, I found his helmet, he is there, God willing, alive. If not, at least find him, see him, one needs to give them their eternal rest,” Zuly, a woman looking for her 23-year-old son who worked in a bakery, told AFP.
Since the day of the earthquakes, he has been sleeping with his daughter in a small square next to the destroyed bakery, hoping to find her. “I’m not leaving here without my son,” says this mother.
