{"id":999531,"date":"2026-08-14T04:16:17","date_gmt":"2026-08-14T04:16:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/999531\/"},"modified":"2026-08-14T04:16:17","modified_gmt":"2026-08-14T04:16:17","slug":"colombia-and-venezuela-earthquakes-how-the-government-responses-differed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/999531\/","title":{"rendered":"Colombia and Venezuela earthquakes: How the government responses differed"},"content":{"rendered":"

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) \u2014 For the second time in two months, the ground was shaking<\/a> in South America. Once again, families flooded social media with pleas for help finding missing loved<\/a> ones under flattened buildings. Once again, governments across political divides and continents pledged aid<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But in many ways, the contrast between Colombia\u2019s 7.4-magnitude<\/a> earthquake on Monday and Venezuela\u2019s back-to-back temblors<\/a> on June 24 could not have been more stark.<\/p>\n

In Venezuela, acting President Delcy Rodr\u00edguez<\/a> waited nearly four hours before addressing the nation. In Colombia, newly inaugurated<\/a> President Abelardo de la Espriella announced an emergency command post to oversee rescue efforts barely an hour after the earthquake struck. For weeks, Venezuelan civilians were clawing<\/a> through rubble by hand. Hours after the earthquake in Colombia, rescue teams were searching for survivors with cranes and excavators.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"People<\/p>\n

People reach out to receive supplies from volunteers, days after an earthquake struck La Guaira, Venezuela, June 30, 2026. (AP Photo\/Matias Delacroix, File)<\/p>\n

People reach out to receive supplies from volunteers, days after an earthquake struck La Guaira, Venezuela, June 30, 2026. (AP Photo\/Matias Delacroix, File)<\/p>\n

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In Venezuela, Rodr\u00edguez relied on rescuers from around the world to fill critical gaps in the state\u2019s response. Colombia has so far declined foreign crews except for those from the United States, saying it has enough personnel and has requested humanitarian supplies instead.<\/p>\n

The contrast is a reminder of the differences between the neighboring nations \u2014 their political systems, resources and the strength of their institutions \u2014 and a demonstration of how those can take on life-or-death importance in catastrophes.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe differences between an authoritarian regime and a democratic system can be seen clearly in the institutions and in their capacity to respond to an emergency,\u201d said Ronal Rodr\u00edguez, a Venezuela specialist at Colombia\u2019s Rosario University. \u201cCrises are also political opportunities.\u201d <\/p>\n

In Colombia, a political newcomer takes charge<\/p>\n

De la Espriella, a conservative former criminal defense lawyer with no previous political experience, was sworn in as president<\/a> in Colombia\u2019s third-largest city, Cali, less than 72 hours before the earthquake toppled buildings there and across the country\u2019s far-flung provinces \u2014 the very regions he\u2019d pledged to prioritize on the campaign trail.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Patients<\/p>\n

Patients from a clinic evacuated due to earthquake damage lie in beds at a temporary facility set up in a gymnasium at a nearby school in Cali, Colombia, Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026. (AP Photo\/Santiago Saldarriaga)<\/p>\n

Patients from a clinic evacuated due to earthquake damage lie in beds at a temporary facility set up in a gymnasium at a nearby school in Cali, Colombia, Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026. (AP Photo\/Santiago Saldarriaga)<\/p>\n

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Even before the earthquake, the political novice was navigating a fraught transition from predecessor Gustavo Petro<\/a>, Colombia\u2019s first leftist president, who at first refused to recognize<\/a> de la Espriella\u2019s narrow victory<\/a> and alleged electoral fraud.<\/p>\n

Their feud derailed Colombia\u2019s formal handover process, leaving key agencies \u2014 including the national disaster management agency \u2014 in the hands of officials de la Espriella attacked as a candidate.<\/p>\n

But humanitarian workers say the government\u2019s earthquake response has transcended those tensions, reflecting the resilience of Colombia\u2019s democracy.<\/p>\n

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\u201cAll the institutions have worked,\u201d said Mar\u00eda Jos\u00e9 Torres Macho, the United Nations\u2019 top official in Colombia. \u201cOur ability to be working with them has not been affected by the change of government.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Rescue<\/p>\n

Rescue workers carry Diana Troncoso after pulling her from the rubble the day after an earthquake struck Cali, Colombia, Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026. (AP Photo\/Ivan Valencia) CORRECTION: Changes city to Cali, not Pereira.<\/p>\n

Rescue workers carry Diana Troncoso after pulling her from the rubble the day after an earthquake struck Cali, Colombia, Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026. (AP Photo\/Ivan Valencia) CORRECTION: Changes city to Cali, not Pereira.<\/p>\n

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Just an hour after the quake, de la Espriella posted a video saying he would \u201cpersonally assume leadership\u201d of the disaster response. \u201cYou\u2019re not alone,\u201d he told Colombians in the country\u2019s hard-hit coffee-growing region.<\/p>\n

Hours later, he was in Bogota, coordinating with government officials and relief agencies. Within 36 hours, he had toured disaster zones in the western cities of Quibdo, Cali and Pereira and dispatched ministers further afield. <\/p>\n

\u201cThere is an entire system that means that even when you change the person at the top, the institution keeps functioning,\u201d said Ana Karina Garc\u00eda, director of Fundaci\u00f3n Juntos Se Puede, a Venezuelan migrant aid group based in Colombia. <\/p>\n

Still, Colombia\u2019s response has not been without controversy. De la Espriella\u2019s rejection of rescue teams from around the world has raised questions about his handling of foreign aid, with China\u2019s ambassador complaining on social media that he did not even know which Colombian official was responsible for coordinating international assistance.<\/p>\n

Rugged terrain, poor infrastructure and communication disruptions have slowed casualty reports from the hardest-hit areas. The government\u2019s national toll of at least 265 dead and 500 missing<\/a> lags far behind counts from local authorities, while an independent database lists over 4,100 as unaccounted for.<\/p>\n

In Venezuela, a political veteran comes under fire<\/p>\n

Despite Rodr\u00edguez\u2019s nearly two decades at the highest levels of Venezuela\u2019s government, she struggled to project authority<\/a> over the disaster response.<\/p>\n

Hours before Rodr\u00edguez took to the airwaves to declare a national emergency, her interior minister, Diosdado Cabello<\/a>, called state television with damage reports \u2014 a sign of their competing claims to power within the ruling party. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

A building damaged during the earthquakes is marked with \u201cS.O.S.\u201d painted stands in La Guaira, Venezuela, July 2, 2026. (AP Photo\/Matias Delacroix, File)<\/p>\n

A building damaged during the earthquakes is marked with \u201cS.O.S.\u201d painted stands in La Guaira, Venezuela, July 2, 2026. (AP Photo\/Matias Delacroix, File)<\/p>\n

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Later, when Rodr\u00edguez gave the government\u2019s initial casualty toll, she reported just 32 dead, a count that didn\u2019t include the epicenter of La Guaira<\/a>, site of the worst destruction. Many of La Guaira\u2019s victims lived in government-built housing complexes<\/a> thrown up cheaply during the oil boom of the early 2000s, part of the self-declared socialist party\u2019s vast subsidized housing program that became a pillar of its political patronage system.<\/p>\n

Rodr\u00edguez remained ensconced in Caracas for a full day before visiting La Guaira and assessing the damage. The government updated the death toll daily in the week that followed without offering a figure for missing people, fueling concerns of a vast undercount as civilians struggled to recover the dead<\/a> without heavy machinery. <\/p>\n

Now, more than six weeks after the quakes, a widely cited opposition-run database lists 29,000 people as unaccounted for. Government officials update the death toll once a week; as of Monday it stood at 6,301.<\/p>\n

Years of political repression deepened Venezuelans\u2019 distrust of the official earthquake response. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Franklin<\/p>\n

Franklin Fuentes searches for missing relatives in the collapsed building where they lived two days after earthquakes struck La Guaira, Venezuela, June 26, 2026. (AP Photo\/Ariana Cubillos, File)<\/p>\n

Franklin Fuentes searches for missing relatives in the collapsed building where they lived two days after earthquakes struck La Guaira, Venezuela, June 26, 2026. (AP Photo\/Ariana Cubillos, File)<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt was very difficult for citizens to access important information about the emergency, get themselves to safety and know where to seek help,\u201d said Gabriel Bastidas, a Venezuelan opposition journalist based in Argentina who runs Monitoreamos.com, a news website critical of Venezuela\u2019s governing political movement<\/a> that\u2019s among dozens of media outlets blocked<\/a> in the country.<\/p>\n

A stronger state swings into action<\/p>\n

But even if Venezuela\u2019s response had been perfect, the aftermath might still have looked very different from Colombia\u2019s: The twin quakes struck densely populated La Guaira around nightfall, complicating reconnaissance, while Colombia\u2019s hit largely rural areas in daylight. <\/p>\n

Experts caution that it often takes weeks for a full picture to emerge after a disaster of this magnitude. Colombia is only days into its response, with thousands still missing.<\/p>\n

Nonetheless, many Venezuelans marvel at how the Colombian government has drawn on resources that years of economic crisis<\/a> and mass migration<\/a> under former President Nicol\u00e1s Maduro<\/a> have hollowed out in their country. <\/p>\n

\u201cFrom the very beginning, we saw the news media broadcasting live from the sites of the catastrophe; mayors, governors, health secretaries, emergency officials providing details about the dead and missing,\u201d Bastidas said. <\/p>\n

Juan Mogollon, a 28-year-old Venezuelan living in Orlando, Florida, learned from a TV broadcast Monday morning that his 16-year-old cousin, Jos\u00e9 Juan Vivas, and the boy\u2019s grandparents were trapped in the ruins of their apartment building in Cali. Vivas, a U.S. permanent resident, was living there with his grandparents, who settled in Colombia after leaving Venezuela.<\/p>\n

Having watched people back home plead for rescuers and equipment after Venezuela\u2019s June earthquakes, Mogollon feared the worst. Yet within a few hours, he said, footage from the collapse site showed excavators, cranes and other heavy machinery, along with firefighters flown in from Bogota. Security forces deployed dogs and drones equipped with thermal cameras to identify victims across stricken towns.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are prepared, they have the equipment, they have the protocols, they know what to do,\u201d Mogollon said as he anxiously waited to hear from his relatives. \u201cThat\u2019s the least we should expect as citizens in every country, you know? That\u2019s the difference between my country and Colombia right now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Still, it wasn\u2019t enough. Later Thursday, at the end of the 72-hour window in which most people trapped in rubble<\/a> are reasonably expected to survive, he heard that rescuers had pulled out their bodies.<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

Associated Press writer Astrid Su\u00e1rez in Bogota, Colombia, contributed to this report.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) \u2014 For the second time in two months, the ground was shaking in South…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":999532,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5],"tags":[342955,1613,12575,12576,399218,190042,12635,400313,57,95233,400316,400315,1612,400314,50,92550,80,159,4217,32322,361973,103,107],"class_list":["post-999531","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-world","tag-abelardo-de-la-espriella","tag-central-america","tag-colombia","tag-colombia-government","tag-columbia-earthquake","tag-diosdado-cabello","tag-earthquakes","tag-gabriel-bastidas","tag-general-news","tag-gustavo-petro","tag-jos-juan-vivas","tag-juan-mogollon","tag-latin-america","tag-mara-jos-torres-macho","tag-news","tag-nicolas-maduro","tag-politics","tag-science","tag-south-america","tag-venezuela","tag-venezuela-earthquakes","tag-world","tag-world-news"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/117091932142675571","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/999531","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=999531"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/999531\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/999532"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=999531"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=999531"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=999531"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}