Two 11-year-old boys have been rescued from the rubble of collapsed buildings in Venezuela within hours of each other, days after powerful earthquakes struck the nation. The rescues offer a glimmer of hope amidst widespread devastation.

Venezuela was hit by magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 earthquakes on Wednesday, which have so far claimed at least 1,430 lives, with tens of thousands still missing. Hundreds of buildings collapsed, trapping many people beneath debris. Rescuers continue to search for survivors, more than 85 hours after the initial tremor, with some expressing optimism that people can still be found alive, particularly if they had access to food and water.

Video footage showed one of the boys, named Moises, being pulled from twisted debris to the applause of rescuers. He had been trapped under approximately 3 meters (9.8 feet) of rubble. A rescue team spent six hours on Saturday performing high-precision work to reach him. Reports indicated he was found near his sister and mother, who did not survive.

Hours later, interim President Delcy Rodríguez announced the rescue of a second 11-year-old boy, posting a video of him being carried down a mound of wreckage on a stretcher. "In these hours, every life is hope for Venezuela," Rodríguez stated. The coastal region of La Guaira, including the town of Caraballeda, has been identified as the area hardest hit by the earthquakes.

Rescuers face ongoing challenges, including aftershocks that continue to terrify residents and hamper search efforts. Many survivors have been forced to live in their cars or camp in open areas like airports and golf courses, seeking safety away from potentially unstable structures. The golf course in Caraballeda has become a central hub for emergency response, serving as a makeshift hospital and a distribution point for humanitarian aid.

Desperate families have been engaged in arduous efforts to find loved ones, digging through debris by hand. Some have reported hearing survivors trapped beneath the rubble but have been unable to move the heavy concrete slabs themselves, anxiously awaiting heavy machinery.

The scale of the disaster is immense, with the two earthquakes striking within 39 seconds of each other. The ongoing rescue operations highlight the resilience of both survivors and emergency personnel in the face of overwhelming loss and destruction.

Helicopters are regularly landing at the golf course, bringing in supplies and emergency personnel from across Venezuela and from international aid organizations. The streets in the affected areas remain cracked and littered with rubble, a stark reminder of the destructive force of the earthquakes.