UN Sends 10,000 Body Bags to Venezuela
NEW YORK: The United Nations (UN) will supply 10,000 body bags to Venezuela, although it hopes that the final death toll from the twin earthquakes will not be that high.
The twin earthquakes last week flattened entire neighbourhoods in the coastal state of La Guaira, killing more than 1,700 people, while tens of thousands of residents remain missing.
UN Coordinator for Venezuela, Gianluca Rampolla del Tindaro, refused to speculate beyond the official figures but said: “We will certainly see a higher death toll than what has been reported.”
“I can give you an indication. We are procuring supplies, and it has been agreed by the authorities here (in Venezuela) for 10,000 body bags.
“This is an assumption, it is very sad and we truly hope the actual death toll will be lower than that,” Rampolla del Tindaro added at a press conference.
Rampolla del Tindaro also praised the international response, saying that 27 countries have deployed more than 2,000 rescue personnel and other staff, along with more than 160 sniffer dogs. – AFP
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