Rescue workers in Venezuela have pulled a three-year-old child alive from beneath the rubble in La Guaira, six days after two powerful earthquakes struck the country.
The rescue comes as tens of thousands of people remain without adequate shelter following the magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 earthquakes that struck less than a minute apart on June 24.
According to Venezuelan authorities, nearly 2,000 people have been confirmed dead, while more than 6,400 others have been rescued.
The United Nations Refugee Agency says humanitarian needs continue to grow as the death toll rises, with thousands of families requiring urgent assistance.
Search and rescue teams, supported by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and other international partners, remain on the ground in the worst-affected areas, providing shelter, healthcare, protection, and other essential services.
United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination teams are also continuing to assess the extent of the damage and identify communities most in need of humanitarian support.
Authorities say about 1,000 buildings, including hospitals, more than 400 schools, and critical water infrastructure have been damaged or destroyed.
In response, the United Nations Children’s Fund, UNICEF, has delivered an initial 47-tonne shipment of emergency supplies, including health kits, medicines, safe childbirth equipment, water purification materials, tents, wheelchairs, and other essential items.
UNICEF says the supplies, together with an earlier shipment from Panama, are expected to support more than 100,000 children and their families over the next three months.
The agency estimates that about 680,000 children across the six affected states now require humanitarian assistance, warning that more than 600 aftershocks have continued since the initial earthquakes, leaving many families afraid to return to their homes.
UNICEF has appealed for additional funding, estimating that 52 million dollars is needed to support the earthquake response, as humanitarian needs continue to outpace available resources.
