Canadian teacher in Venezuela describes chaos as earthquake toll rises – National
A Canadian teacher from Toronto, who lives in Venezuela, says residents are digging through rubble by hand and sleeping in parks as search efforts continue days after two earthquakes devastated parts of the country.
The death toll from Wednesday’s magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 earthquakes has risen to at least 920, while more than 51,000 people are missing, according to Venezuelan authorities.
Heather McKay, a Canadian who teaches at the British School Caracas, was leaving her house to meet a friend for dinner when the first earthquake struck.
“It was like the ocean, almost doing this back and forth (motion),” McKay told Global News.
McKay said he rushed to nearby buildings when he saw what was happening.
“I saw the building and the fire was running … people were just coming down,” he said. There were just holes in most of the apartments.
His apartment was destroyed by the earthquake, forcing him to seek shelter from a colleague.
“My building has big holes in the floor. The wall is nowhere near the stairs,” she said.
McKay added that many residents are still afraid to return to their homes because of concerns about structural damage and aftershocks.
Authorities announced on Friday that they will restrict access to La Guaira, the epicenter of the destruction, as rescuers continue to search for survivors.
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More than 14,000 soldiers and police have been deployed in this area.
But McKay said most rescue efforts are being done by ordinary citizens.
“People ask, ‘Do you have hammers, do you have gloves, do you have hats?'” she said. “Most of the rescue efforts have just been ordinary citizens wearing motorcycle helmets and digging with their hands.”
McKay said many people escaped with the little clothes they were wearing.
“People were on the street wearing pajamas trying to argue with their animals, not knowing anything,” she said. “A lot of people will have lost everything … literally everything except the clothes on their back.”
He warned that the forecasted rain could be even worse for homeless residents sheltering outside.
“There are people camping in plazas and parks. They have nowhere to go,” she said.
Aid organizations usually consider the first 48 to 72 hours after a critical disaster to find survivors trapped under collapsed buildings, according to Red Cross VP of international cooperation, Kelsey Lemon.
“We face a long road to recovery,” Lemon said.
Despite the destruction, McKay said residents came together to help each other.
“Venezuelan people are some of the hardest working and kindest people you will ever meet,” she said. “Everyone is trying their best, but we need help.”
McKay said he registered his presence in Venezuela with Global Affairs Canada and received updates following security incidents earlier this year but “had no contact with them,” since the earthquake.
He urged people not to forget about the country as international attention will shift elsewhere.
Venezuelan authorities said on Friday that 861 volunteers from Mexico, the US, El Salvador, Switzerland, Colombia and beyond are in the country, while others came from other places.
“Right now it’s in the news, but in a week, a month, it won’t be fixed,” said McKay. “Please don’t forget about Venezuela.”
-via files from the Associated Press
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
