Emergency Aid Following Earthquakes in Venezuela

On 24 June, two powerful earthquakes struck northern Venezuela. La Guaira state was hit hardest, with heavy damage also in Caracas and several other states. Nearly 59,000 buildings were damaged or destroyed, thousands of people were killed or injured, and up to 6.8 million people may have been affected. Families who lost their homes moved into overcrowded camps with little access to clean water or sanitation, and continued rains raised the risk of disease.

IsraAID’s team arrived in Caracas within days. Here, we want to share what your generosity has made possible.

The first weeks: meeting urgent needs

At Campo de Golf in Caraballeda, one of the largest camps, we worked with partners to build latrines, showers and handwashing stations. We were the first organization permitted to build sanitation facilities there. We installed water filters, delivered water to churches serving as community hubs, and distributed hygiene kits. We also opened Child-Friendly Spaces where children could play and recover, and ran emotional recovery workshops for search and rescue teams, firefighters and medical volunteers.

What your support has achieved so far:

• Over 1,070 children reached through education and child protection activities
• 3,300 people with safer drinking water, including through 228 household water filters
• 5,200 people with better access to sanitation
• More than 450 teachers, facilitators and other professionals trained to support children after disaster
• 125 community leaders and caregivers reached through wellbeing activities

Helping children get back to learning

With many schools damaged and children out of class for months, our focus soon shifted to education. Our Child-Friendly Spaces are now Learning and Wellbeing Spaces, where daily routines rebuild children’s reading, maths and emotional skills. Seven are now running: two run by IsraAID in the Campo de Golf and La Lucha camps, four by our partner Hogar Bambi in Caracas, and one by our partner Enciluz in Carayaca, with more opening soon. 

We are also training public school teachers, many affected by the earthquakes themselves, in self-care and how to support their students’ return to class.

Sport as a path to recovery

For teenagers, we launched Tercer Tiempo with our partner Deporte para el Desarrollo. Here, we trained 12 sports coaches to bring emotional support into their sessions, and around 60 young people now take part in sports activities that build confidence and teamwork and encourage them back to school.

Clean water and healthy habits

We continue to provide water filters and train families to maintain them, most recently for caregivers in Carayaca whose homes were affected by land subsidence. At Campo de Golf, we helped residents set up a community cleaning committee and even led Global Handwashing Day events with local partners.

Looking ahead

Campo de Golf is expected to close in December, and families are still rebuilding. Over the coming months, we will open more learning spaces, keep training teachers, and work closely with local partners so this support continues long after the emergency.

Thank you for standing with the people of Venezuela. Your support is helping children learn again and families recover.