500 Volunteers Rally in Doral to Aid Venezuela Quake

When Mary Mancera heard about the earthquakes that devastated her home country of Venezuela, she knew she had to act. On Friday, the 32-year-old joined over 500 volunteers at a Doral warehouse, racing to pack emergency supplies for families trapped in the rubble.

Two powerful earthquakes measuring magnitude 7.2 and 7.5 struck northern Venezuela Wednesday evening. The death toll climbed to 920 by Friday afternoon, with over 3,300 injured and 172 people still trapped.

Inside the Global Empowerment Mission warehouse, volunteers worked assembly lines stacked with baby clothes, diapers, bottles, and first aid supplies. Cars lined up around the building, their trunks overflowing with donations. Each time a new vehicle arrived, volunteers erupted in cheers.

For Mancera, the distance felt agonizing. "We can't lift the rubble, offer food or have direct contact with people," she said. "It just feels like it's not gonna be enough." Some of her extended family lost their homes, and friends still had relatives missing in Caracas and La Guaira.

Paola Rodriguez, 35, rushed through the warehouse carrying boxes of donations. She spent most of her life in Venezuela before moving to Broward. "The people are helping each other with their hands," she told WLRN, noting the lack of government rescue teams in the hardest-hit areas.

Rescuers were working within what experts call a "golden window," a 48 to 72 hour period when survivors can still be rescued from rubble. Organizations like GEM worked to extend this critical timeframe by rushing food and water to the region.

Santi Chumaceiro, co-founder of I Love Venezuela, prepared to fly into the country with GEM. The Miami-based nonprofit was founded by Venezuelans to support communities back home. "I spoke to a nonprofit yesterday that is receiving kids that lost their parents," she said. "So, that's who we're going to give our first aid to."

GEM established a distribution center in Caracas to receive and sort incoming donations before delivering them across affected regions. The organization used local connections and smaller partner foundations to reach neighboring cities in desperate need.

The Ripple Effect

The response extended far beyond the warehouse walls. Over 50,000 people were listed as missing on a tracking website, though many reports awaited verification. Venezuelan communities across South Florida mobilized, proving that distance couldn't diminish their determination to help.

For Mancera, the moments when volunteers cheered for new donations brought tears. "The energy of the Venezuelan people is amazing," she said. "In times of need, we always come together."

Rodriguez felt the same pride watching her community respond. "At this moment, I am calling for more people to help," she told WLRN. "We need more hands." The warehouse continues accepting donations at 1850 NW 84th Ave in Doral, ready to transform compassion into action.