Venezuela Restricts 1 Disaster Zone as Volunteer Traffic Delays Rescues
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jun 27
Venezuela Restricts 1 Disaster Zone as Volunteer Traffic Delays Rescues
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jun 27
Summary
La Guaira access was limited Saturday to government vehicles and other authorized personnel after civilian volunteers and aid convoys clogged the only highway into Venezuela’s hardest-hit earthquake zone.
Traffic from trucks and motorcycles carrying food, water and medicine delayed ambulances and rescue crews, turning a surge of public support into an obstacle for people still trapped under collapsed buildings.
A widely shared video showed an aid worker urging volunteers to stop driving into La Guaira, saying rescuers could not reach survivors because roads were jammed.
The same worker warned a damaged bridge had shifted several centimeters under the traffic load and could become impassable, while directing donors to leave supplies at collection centers in Caracas instead.