US deported more than 100 Venezuelans just before the earthquakes; many remain missing
· Telemundo McAllen (KTLM)
MIAMI (AP) — More than 100 recently deported individuals from the United States were held in a hotel when earthquakes struck Venezuela, triggering a desperate race to find survivors and bodies buried under the rubble, according to survivors. A deportation flight from Miami arrived in Caracas hours before Wednesday's quakes. On board were 146 Venezuelans, including 19 women and seven children, according to ICE Flight Monitor, an initiative by Human Rights First that tracks deportation flights. Lisbeth Portillo, 58, recounted that she managed to escape from the rubble of the hotel along with about 20 other deportees, who walked the streets in search of help. Upon exiting the remains of the building in La Guaira, one of the areas hardest hit by the 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude earthquakes on Wednesday, they saw people running, some naked and others barefoot. 'We walked about five kilometers, and I cried and cried… there was no communication,' Portillo said in a phone interview from her home in Maracaibo, Venezuela.
AI summary · Source: Telemundo McAllen (KTLM) →
