Key facts
- Over 100 Venezuelans deported from the U.S. are missing following earthquakes in Venezuela.
- The deportees had arrived in Venezuela hours before the earthquakes struck.
- Many were staying at a government-run hotel in La Guaira that collapsed.
- Survivors have questioned the government's decision to house deportees in the damaged hotel.
- The Venezuelan government has reported over 1,750 fatalities from the earthquakes.
- Rescue and identification efforts are complicated by the withholding of deportees' documents.
More than 100 Venezuelans recently deported from the United States are missing in Venezuela after powerful earthquakes struck the country hours after their arrival. The deportees, who had arrived on a flight from Miami, were reportedly housed at the government-run Hotel Santuario La Llanada in La Guaira, a region heavily impacted by the seismic events. The hotel collapsed during the quakes, and survivors have described escaping the rubble. Families of the missing are struggling to find information and identify loved ones, citing the withholding of personal documents and phones as a major impediment. The Venezuelan government has expressed condolences and provided contact numbers, but many families report a lack of official communication. The earthquakes have caused widespread devastation, with over 1,750 reported fatalities and thousands injured.