On November 3rd, 2022, the Valle Seco community, located in the Guanta Municipality in Anzoátegui State, suffered a landslide that affected around 60 families. Some homes became total losses after five rivers simultaneously overflowed after the heavy downpours that hit the north of the state in those days.
By La Patilla – Javier A. Guaipo
Feb 14, 2023
Little was said about this unfortunate episode, because it happened at the same time as the Valle Verde tragedy, in Puerto La Cruz, where the landslide of part of the hill destroyed hundreds of houses and claimed the lives of seven people.
The access road to Valle Seco from the Troncal 9 national highway became impassable, as part of the road was dragged away by huge stones that rolled from the mountain. This in turn meant that the only way to access the rural community was by sea.
Locals commented that they were completely isolated for two days, because they were also left without electricity service and it was only on Saturday, November 5th that they were able to notify about what had happened, when a couple of people traveled in a “peñero” (artisanal fishing boat) to the city.
They also say that at that time they received a visit from the Chavista Mayor, Natali Bello, but later the same authorities considered the situation solved. However, the victims assured that this statement is far from the real conditions and until now they are still waiting for government help.
Need And Fear
“We are already three months away from the event and we still need the help of a friendly hand. At some point we had the attention of the mayor for up to three days. From then on we have not received more attention from any entity,” said Juan Carlos Guarimata, one of those affected by the natural disaster.
The father of the family was forced to move to the old “Infocentro” headquarters in Valle Seco, along with his wife, his seven-year-old son, and his 70-year-old mother, because his home was left totally covered by mud. He stated that he fears experiencing something similar to that episode of terror, since the house is located next to the mouth of the stream that runs through the community towards the sea.
“There were houses with total loss where nothing was recovered. We lost beds, windows, fans, televisions, etc. We recovered some mattresses and plastic chairs, but until now no government entities have helped us to replace anything and we really need it.”
Guarimata stressed that the fear of returning to their home is based on the fact that the ravine is still clogged by logs, rocks and other debris carried by the current, so they are at risk of suffering another landslide as soon as the first downpour of the year falls. “Thank God that happened during the day, but had it caught us at night, and great misfortune would have been unleashed here.”
Alberto Presilla added that in the rural community they remain in a precarious situation three months after the landslide, since nothing has been solved. “This remains exactly ‘the same’. The rains will be coming again and we are going to lose our houses, we could even lose families, so we need a quick solution to this problem.”
The neighbor reiterated that they need the help of the mayor’s office and the governor’s office to address this problem, since they do not have the resources to solve it on their own.
“We want them to send some heavy machinery to clear the canal. Really, we are in danger and we are several families. This was left as ‘solved’, and in truth it is not solved, because the rubble has not been removed.”
Presilla insisted on the urgency that these works deserve, because the accumulated tree branches, coupled with the fact that sewage does not circulate normally, has given rise to diseases such as dengue fever and malaria, which mainly attack children and older adults.
“I have tried to build a wall to protect my home, but I only have three bags of cement and I am waiting for the mayoress (Natali Bello) or the governor (Luis Marcano) to answer the call and provide the necessary materials, both for me, as for the rest of the people who need them. If they, who have the resources, do not address this themselves, how can we do anything when sometimes we do not even have enough to eat?
Some people, who preferred to remain anonymous, said that they were left on the street because the mudflow swept away even their clothes and left them with only what they were wearing. In fact, some had to move to what used to function as mini-stores on the Valle Seco Boulevard.
“The first few days, all good. The mayoress came, but then they forgot about us and what they promised. The politicians have not come anymore, until they come again now that the elections are approaching, but around here they have not come to recover anything,” said Ada Caguana, who lives “with Christ in her mouth” for fear of contracting any disease from the pile of rubble that still remains in front of his house.
Totally Abandoned
The inhabitants of Valle Seco regret that not even the landslide they suffered caused the authorities to take them into account to rescue the population. In fact, they feel that it plunged them much deeper into the neglect and abandonment to which they had already been condemned.
It should be noted that in this rural community they have a boulevard that, at the time, was inaugurated with much fanfare by former Chavista governor Tarek William Saab. It even served as a location for an “Aló Presidente”, the audiovisual program of the late Hugo Chávez and also to record some episodes of Venezuelan soap operas.
Here they had a pier from which peñeros left for the “Punta La Cruz” and “Ña Cleta” islands, as well as for the Conoma and Conomita spas, among other places. However, more than a decade later, hardly any boat leaves that is used to mainly to transport locals given that public land transport is almost non-existent.
“Here we live by ‘killing tigers’ (moonlighting, odd jobs), because the tourist activity died and the fishing industry is on the same path due to crime. In recent months, the thugs have stolen more than 10 engines from the boats we used to fish, and that has reduced our ability to work,” said Richard Serrano.
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He added that police surveillance in this sector is so non-existent that the only police booth there is completely ransacked, to the point that it has no doors, let alone officers.
Despite the fact that the Chavista authorities seek to sell Anzoátegui, and particularly Guanta, as a tourist reference, the inhabitants of Valle Seco have little hope that they will be taken into account despite having the boulevard that, according to the locals, is recoverable.
“There are restaurants, facilities for shops, bathrooms and ticket offices, but all of this is seriously deteriorated because nobody lends a hand. Neither the mayor’s office nor the governor’s office come here to see how we are doing or what we need, unless there is a march or elections, which is when they come to put their lies that they are going to recover and then forget about it,” commented Jesús Aponte.
For now, the residents of this rural Anzoátegui community, located on the border with Sucre State, hope that the authorities heed the call to primarily attend to those affected by the landslide and the cleaning of the debris in the ravine, given that it is approaching the rainy season. They fear that a worse tragedy will hit the community left adrift by Chavista neglect.
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