‘A nightmare': Earthquakes leave Boston's Venezuelan community aching for info

Repost from NBC Boston News Story

Venezuelans in the Boston area are coming together to try to coordinate resources to help back family and friends caught up in Wednesday's devastating and deadly earthquakes.

At Peka, a Venezuelan restaurant in Brighton, people were closely monitoring the earthquake coverage back home. Ciro Valiente, who came to Boston from Venezuela in 2014, has been working since last night to help locals find their loved ones.

"It has been a nightmare," said Valiente. "There are still so many people trapped within the buildings."

Many local Venezuelans say they are having trouble connecting with loved ones.

"Because of the lack of communication, we are trying to move people around the area, trying to find those persons who we don't know if they are still alive," Valiente said.

Carlina Velasquez, the president of the Venezuelan Association of Massachusetts, which has about 12,000 members locally, said "they are desperate to know what is going on with their families. There is no Wi-Fi or anything, or electricity."

Massive search and rescue operations are underway. The United States, which removed Venezuela's sitting president earlier this year, reported it is sending rescue teams and other resources.

Valiente said at least one local was able to connect with hopeful news hours after the quake struck. That person heard that their loved one was okay: "The building was destroyed but he was okay and that is the most important thing."

It has been decades since the country was hit like this by an earthquake.

The Venezuelan Association of Massachusetts is sharing on their social media platforms a lot of information on how people can help. Other local groups, like Catholic Charities Boston, are connecting people to their sister agencies, which have started coordinating relief.