Families Seek Answers After Earthquake Traps Venezuelan Deportees Held by SEBIN
Relatives of Flight 164 passengers remain in the dark after the June 24 earthquakes destroyed the SEBIN-run health hotel where deportees were detained.
On June 24, Flight 164 landed in Maiquetía with 146 Venezuelans deported from the United States as part of the Plan Vuelta a la Patria. Upon arrival, SEBIN confined the passengers in the four-storey Negra Hipólita Health Hotel for health checks and document seizure. That night the twin earthquakes that struck La Guaira caused the hotel to collapse, trapping detainees and leaving bodies marked “Repatriated” in improvised morgues like Los Silos.
While a small number of survivors were later released and flown out of Maiquetía, the government has not disclosed the fate of those who perished, with survivor estimates ranging from 12 to 32. Relatives, including Danielys Hurtado, who almost claimed the wrong body, and Oswadeliz Núñez, mother of Daniel Núñez, have formed support groups and are demanding answers from SEBIN and ICE. The tragedy highlights opaque deportation procedures, loss of personal belongings, and ongoing trauma for families left without closure.
Why it matters
It shows how deportation and disaster response failures left families clueless about loved ones' fates.
How this story developed
- Aug 13 Colombia's President Declares Economic Emergency to Accelerate Earthquake Recovery
- Aug 14 Colombia asked Mexico’s rescue brigade to provide an additional certification before deployment.
- Aug 15 Authorities are weighing the relocation of residents from the temporary camp in La Libertad park due to concerns about additional building failures.
- Aug 18 Rescuers discovered a survivor alive under the rubble of a Pereira hotel four days after the quake.
In this story
Related stories
4 in this thread