MAIQUETIA, Venezuela (AP) 鈥� Thousands of people affected by the in Venezuela last month are increasingly facing challenges accessing clean water as well as sanitation and hygiene services.
Families in the hardest-hit state, La Guaira, have taken to the beach to shower and relieve themselves, with excrement now dotting parts of the once-crowded Caribbean beaches. Others are using the little water that did not spill from their home storage tanks to do dishes and clean themselves. Many are after 190 and 856 others were damaged, according to Venezuelan officials, in the on June 24 that killed 3,811 people.
鈥淲e always have water in the tank 鈥� water reserved 鈥� but with the earthquake, most of the tanks in the houses broke,鈥� Juliani Herrera, 20, said of the large blue plastic tanks that many Venezuelan families use to store water on days when the state-owned utility services the areas. 鈥淣ow, we have to wait to see if a tanker comes and fills buckets.鈥�
Some of the affected communities only had potable water service once every month or two even before the earthquakes. In Maiquet铆a, known for being home to the country鈥檚 main airport, people lined up Wednesday to receive a box bearing the United States flag containing food, water and a hygiene kit that included a soap, toothbrush and body cleansing towelettes.
Herrera received one of the boxes that were handed out at a tent camp adjacent to the beach. She carried it for several blocks, her chin, upper arm and hands covered with iodine-stained scratches that she got when she fell from a motorcycle as the ground shook violently when the quakes hit.
The government of acting President Delcy Rodr铆guez has estimated that the earthquakes left about 18,000 people without a home. The displaced are now living in schools, sidewalks, parks, plazas and other public spaces.
Beatriz Ochoa, regional head of advocacy for Latin America at the Norwegian Refugee Council, said in a statement that improved conditions are necessary to prevent spread of diseases as people are living in densely populated settings under high temperatures and seasonal rains and with limited privacy.
鈥淚 have seen families doing everything they can to maintain dignity in extremely difficult conditions,鈥� she said. 鈥淚n one temporary shelter, I saw families organizing themselves to keep common spaces clean, including through makeshift toilets and basic waste management arrangements. Their determination is remarkable, but families should not have to shoulder this burden alone.鈥�
Rodr铆guez on Wednesday announced that her government was already working with experts to identify appropriate areas to 鈥渂uild new earthquake-resistant homes and cities.鈥� She added that local and international companies had also been called up 鈥渇or the rapid and aggressive construction of housing.鈥�
Rodr铆guez also said she had 鈥渄ecided to send a letter, among others, to the King of England鈥� to request the release of Venezuelan gold reserves frozen at the Bank of England due to economic sanctions.
The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction has estimated direct physical damage to housing and infrastructure around $37 billion.
The U.N. relief chief Tom Fletcher met with Rodr铆guez and earthquake survivors on Wednesday, when the organization’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs issued an appeal for roughly $300 million to assist 1.3 million Venezuelans in urgent need of aid.
As people like Herrera lined up steps away from the sea and waited for a box of aid under a bright sky, a shared emotional landscape dominated by exhaustion and disbelief hung over the camp. Among the tents, a hand-painted cardboard sign read 鈥淐iudad Bendita,鈥� or Blessed City.
鈥淭he worry is always when people are silent because you can really then see the trauma that they鈥檙e going through,鈥� he said. 鈥淎t many of the sites we visited today we saw people not speaking, in complete hopeless despair, but elsewhere you did also see kids playing football, getting a good meal, and so you can see the humanitarian response also having its impact.鈥�
___
Follow AP鈥檚 coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
