A harrowing video showing the moments after a family’s apartment block was devastated by the recent Venezuelan earthquakes has been shared by an Islander who lost his brother in the disaster.
Mariano Antonio Ferreira Correia shared the footage, which was recorded by surviving relatives as they escaped the collapsing building, with Express.
Mr Correia’s 36-year-old brother Javier, who previously lived in Jersey and worked at La Petite Baguette, was among those killed in the earthquakes.
The footage was filmed by the mother of Mr Correia’s half-brother, Raymer Gabriel Plasencia, as she sheltered with Mr Plasencia’s 85-year-old grandmother, Nieves Salcedo de Plasencia, and the family’s dog, Protos.
All three miraculously survived after their building was left almost completely reduced to rubble.
Mr Correia, who works at a barber shop in St Helier, has launched an appeal for donations to support relief efforts in his home country and is collecting essential supplies at his workplace on Beresford Street.
He is also urging the authorities to consider special measures that would allow his half-brother to remain in Jersey after his work permit expires, saying he no longer has a home to return to.
He also hopes his mother and grandmother can be brought to the Island for safety.
A Jersey Customs and Immigration Service spokesperson confirmed that talks have been taking place with UK Home Office officials to “understand whether any additional immigration measures may be considered”.
The spokesperson added that Customs is “committed to working compassionately and pragmatically” to help those affected by “exceptional circumstances”.
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Mr Correia has set up a GoFundMe page for donations to buy and send aid to Venezuela.
He is also collecting donated items at his workplace on Beresford Street between 9am and 6pm for the rest of this week.
