Home / Disasters and Accidents / Girl, 12, Survives 32 Hours Trapped in Rubble
Girl, 12, Survives 32 Hours Trapped in Rubble
6 Jul
Summary
- A 12-year-old girl was trapped for 32 hours under earthquake debris.
- She survived on ketchup and grated cheese while awaiting rescue.
- Only three survivors were rescued alive from her 10-story building.
A 12-year-old girl named Fabiana was trapped for 32 harrowing hours after two strong earthquakes, including a magnitude 7.5 tremor, struck Venezuela on June 24. She was in her home in Caraballeda, La Guaira state, when her 10-story building collapsed.
Fabiana found herself buried under debris, with the ceiling nearly touching her face. During her agonizing wait for rescue, she survived by consuming a bottle of ketchup and some grated cheese she found. A nurse, rescued earlier, informed volunteers that a girl was alive inside.
Despite numerous rescue attempts and moments of despair for her mother, Karina Blanco, a volunteer named Viktor managed to locate Fabiana. After an extensive effort using motorcycles and car headlights for illumination, rescuers finally created a hole large enough to see her.
Fabiana was pulled out of the rubble around 02:00 local time on Friday, 32 hours after the initial earthquakes. She suffered a fractured left foot and minor injuries. Of the nearly 50 people in her building, only three were rescued alive. The quakes officially claimed 3,342 lives, with tens of thousands missing.
