Venezuelan universities support relief efforts after earthquakes

Universities in Venezuela have been supporting disaster relief efforts in the country, in the aftermath of two deadly earthquakes.

Historic institutions including the prestigious Central University of Venezuela have been impacted by the quakes, which occurred within seconds of one another on 24 June.

The second, one of the strongest to affect the country in a century, registered a magnitude of 7.5, with the epicentre of the tremors located near the capital of Caracas in the north.

More than 1,400 people are known to have died, with tens of thousands of people still missing.

The Central University of Venezuela’s Faculty of Sciences has entirely suspended its academic and administrative functions as authorities evaluate the safety of impacted buildings.

According to a post on the faculty’s website, members of the school are also taking time to assess their own situation and that of their families in the wake of the disaster.

Dean of the faculty, Ernesto Fuenmayor Di Prisco, urged the community to remain calm and to comply with authorities as responders continued their work.

The institution is just one of a number of Caracas-based universities also working to support humanitarian efforts.

It has been organising donation drives for those caught up in the earthquakes, while members of its engineering school have been helping to inspect local buildings for damage.

One of Venezuela’s largest higher education providers, Andrés Bello Catholic University, has also been collecting donations, with volunteers sorting through clothes, bottles of water and other supplies for those who have been made homeless.

Universidad Metropolitana (Unimet), meanwhile, shared a website started by one of its recent graduates, which aims to connect users to vital information and resources during the national tragedy.

In addition, it has posted details of how to reach out to volunteer mental health and well-being practitioners, telling its student community: “You are not alone.”

The university’s rectoral committee said its academic calendar remained on pause.

Unimet’s law school, meanwhile, announced the loss of one of its academics. The school said it was in collective mourning for its professor, Alicia Monagas, a specialist in public administration.

On 28 June, senior Venezuelan lawmaker Jorge Rodríguez said rescuers were now counting down the final “critical hours” to save lives.

He told the country more than 700 buildings had collapsed or been impacted by the quakes and revealed more than 12,000 people had been displaced.

Unicef has said there are hundreds of families in “urgent need of clean water and medical care”, while international teams have arrived from countries including the US, the UK and France.

Announcing £2 million in emergency humanitarian funding, prime minister Keir Starmer called the natural disaster “devastating”.

“The UK stands in solidarity with all those affected, particularly those who have lost loved ones, homes and livelihoods,” he added.

georgia.luckhurst@timeshighereducation.com