1999, December 19th Venezuela, Caracas

In Venezuela's worst natural disaster in a half-century the official death toll from the week's floods has topped 10,000. Most of the victims were buried alive under avalanches of mud or swept downstream. The toll includes at least 100 dead in Caracas. Raging rivers and mudslides along Venezuela's Caribbean coast have left at least 6,000 people missing and presumed dead as heavy rains swept away entire communities, leaving about 150,000 people homeless, forced to find shelter in schools, stadiums, churches and even the presidential residence.

Entire families were separated. The government has set up a Web site featuring images of lost children, in hopes that they're still alive and can be reunited with their worried parents. Lists of identified children have been posted outside the presidential mansion in Caracas.

On Wednesday night (Dec. 15), Venezuela was drenched by torrential rains caused by La Nina, a meteorological phenomenon that has caused unusually rainy and cool weather in South America. The downpour triggered avalanches of mud, rocks and boulders on Mount Avila, outside Caracas. Mudslides closed roads and destroyed many homes and businesses. Thousands of flimsy, precariously perched shacks were swept away. Millions of poor people had built homes on the mountainside because they couldn't afford to live anywhere else, and for decades, government officials did little to stop them. The worst flooding was in the state of Vargas, just north of the capital Caracas.

Venezuela's armed forces aided the rescue effort Saturday, with army helicopters plucking survivors from the disaster area and navy vessels evacuating residents by sea.

Desperate survivors confront national guard troops

For a fifth straight day, desperate and hungry survivors in the port city of Guaira wandered in search of food and water, both in short supply. Their desperation was evident Monday (Dec. 20) in a confrontation with the national guard.

Thousands of people descended on crates that had been broken open by raging waters. The crowd took away food and milk, and some were seen carrying away toys and cellular telephones. Guardsmen fired warning shots into the air and summoned a helicopter to fly overhead as the people dispersed.

Rains continued Saturday, but were light enough to allow rescue teams to clear debris, recover bodies and ferry thousands of stranded victims from submerged towns to Simon Bolivar International Airport in La Guaira, outside the capital. At the airport, thousands of victims were sprawled in waiting lounges and slept on floors with whatever belongings they were able to salvage.

Private economists are assessing the economic harm and are estimating that the damage to roads, ports, electricity, telephone lines, schools, hospitals and homes could reach $2 billion -- or 2 percent of the South American country's gross domestic product. Venezuela, the world's third-largest oil exporter, is already mired in a deep recession.