Astrid Arnaude and her daughter, Jade Hernández, found themselves huddled under a dining room table during the chaos of two powerful earthquakes that struck La Guaira, Venezuela, on June 24. Despite being buried alive for nearly 60 hours, they maintained hope and resilience through deep conversations about spirituality and life. Jade’s determination to survive and celebrate her upcoming ninth birthday kept them going as they prayed to various entities for rescue.
The disaster left thousands dead, injured, and displaced in La Guaira, overwhelming local authorities. Despite initial reports of no survivors in Arnaude’s building, her friend Jade Macedo refused to give up and organized a search team. Meanwhile, Arnaude and Jade, who had moved into a cozy apartment near the beach not long ago, faced the terrifying ordeal of being trapped in the rubble.
In the darkness and uncertainty, Arnaude and Jade navigated their confinement by rationing food, even resorting to drinking urine for hydration. Arnaude’s resourcefulness and determination to keep her daughter alive sustained them through the ordeal, despite moments of despair and fear. Outside, Macedo and a team of volunteers tirelessly worked to locate and rescue them, culminating in a miraculous extraction that brought them back to light and safety.
The emotional reunion between Arnaude and Macedo after the rescue was a surreal moment of gratitude and disbelief. Now safe in a shelter in Caracas, Arnaude likened their rescue to a rebirth, a moment of emerging from darkness into a new life. Their harrowing experience and unwavering hope serve as a testament to the resilience of the human spirit in the face of adversity.