Venezuela quakes left behind 'pure devastation'

The rubble of collapsed homes, children's toys, clothing, and shattered family pictures frames were what greeted a team of British firefighters deployed to Venezuela after it was devastated by twin earthquakes.

Amid the warm, dusty environment and unpleasant smells, the teams were surrounded by people who had lost everything.

It was a difficult picture to process. A stretch of beautiful ocean with a backdrop of stunning sunsets, contrasted by total destruction in front of it.

"The views were lost... you were surrounded by beautiful mountains, and [it] was just a disaster zone," said West Midlands firefighter, Mark Leeson, one of those sent to help.

Station commander Leeson, normally based in Bedworth, Warwickshire, is part of UK Fire & Rescue International Search and Rescue (UK ISAR).

It can deploy within a 6-10 hour timeframe and includes personnel from 14 of the UK's fire & rescue services.

The team sent out was there for 10 days, and included a medical team, canine team, structural engineers and medics.

Although the team prepares, trains and exercises for this kind of deployment, Leeson still struggled to process what was in front of him.

"It was pretty surreal to be honest," he said.

"From the moment we arrived, the scale of disruption was pretty much impossible to picture... we've seen videos, we've seen photos.

"This was a country not just hit by one earthquake, but two large earthquakes, very close together... it was just pure devastation."

Leeson and the other firefighters liaised with other international teams, and spoke to the community, finding out information about the last time they had heard from missing family and friends.

"There's also humanitarian aid," he said.

"Any areas we were coming across where the people have got no accommodation because their houses have been demolished, we could support them, providing tents, food and water.

"You were there with families that had lost everything - from their homes, close family, relatives. It was difficult to take that in."

He added: "It becomes more personal when there's family picture frames... the ones on the wall are now shattered, sitting on the floor."

Despite the total devastation, Leeson said there were moments of hope.

"It's like a 96-hour window when there's the biggest hope of pulling people out alive," he said.

"Teams were still rescuing people... so people were still coming out alive."

What Leeson will remember most, though, was the resilience of the Venezuelan people.

"They've lost their homes, friends and families,[and] they still found time to offer us kindness."

"They were offering us water, sweets, anything they had. They were offering it just to help us get through those difficult moments, which was amazing.

"Their kindness was just exceptional to me."

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