A fourth humanitarian flight takes off this Sunday afternoon (28) from Brazil to Venezuela to help with search and rescue operations after the neighboring country was hit by an earthquake last Wednesday (24). The aircraft will carry 35 military firefighters from the states of São Paulo and Minas Gerais. The flight is scheduled to depart from Guarulhos Air Base (SP). Firefighters from both states will reinforce teams already working in La Guaira, Venezuela.
The Brazilian humanitarian mission began this Saturday (27), shortly after arriving in Venezuela. The teams operate mainly in the municipality of Vargas, in the state of La Guaira, one of the hardest hit. According to the Brazilian government, despite the logistical difficulties of the operation, the team, coordinated by the director of Preparedness and Relief of the National Civil Defense, Armin Braun, rescued at least two people alive and is working to rescue a child from under the rubble.
To date, authorities have confirmed 1,430 deaths, 3,238 injuries and approximately 4,000 people affected. Material damage covers civil and government infrastructure, with losses exceeding 300 buildings destroyed.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM), an agency of the United Nations (UN), estimates that up to 6.76 million people may have been affected by the earthquakes. The projection includes around 2 million residents of Caracas and considers population analyzes and damage caused by the tremors.
UN aid chief Tom Fletcher told AFP in Geneva that the whereabouts of more than 50,000 people were unknown. “This is an extremely complex rescue operation,” he told the international agency. An unofficial list of missing people circulating on social media includes the names of more than 52,000 people.
Humanitarian mission
The first Brazilian mission left on Friday (26), after taking off from Guarulhos Air Base, in São Paulo. The team brings together 44 professionals, including members of the Military Fire Departments of São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Paraná, specialists from the National Secretariat for Civil Protection and Defense and technicians from the National Telecommunications Agency. The aircraft also carried six sniffer dogs and equipment for search and rescue operations.
On Saturday morning, a Brazilian Air Force plane departed from Galeão Air Base, in Rio de Janeiro, carrying an Advanced Trauma Unit from the Brazilian Navy Field Hospital, 48 military personnel responsible for operating the structure and 100 water purifiers with solar panels, with the capacity to treat five thousand liters per day each. The equipment will be donated to the Venezuelan Civil Defense.
In the afternoon, a third flight carried five calamity kits with 111,800 medicines and supplies, as well as a complementary module for the installation of the field hospital. Among the materials sent are antibiotics, analgesics, anti-inflammatories, injectable solutions, bandages, gauze, infusion devices, syringes, gloves, plasters and masks. According to the federal government, the amount is enough to serve around 1,500 people for a month, and the donations do not compromise the Unified Health System’s stocks.
Source: www.brasildefato.com.br
