As night fell in Caracas on Saturday, thousands of people sought refuge in the streets, public squares and parks after a pair of earthquakes leveled parts of Venezuela last week.
The powerful double earthquake that rocked the country's northern coast on June 24 has left at least 1,450 people dead and over 3,000 injured, and nearly 13,000 displaced, according to Jorge Rodriguez, the head of the National Assembly.
The disaster has aggravated the problems created by years of economic and political tensions. The government is headed by interim President Delcy Rodriguez since her predecessor Nicolas Maduro was captured by the US military in January.
As rescue efforts continue, pressure is mounting to prove that her government can handle the crisis. She has formed a presidential commission to assess the condition of housing and infrastructure damaged by the earthquakes.
Ordinary Venezuelans have rallied in solidarity to help search for the missing and provide food, water, medicine and other resources to a growing number of people in shelters and makeshift encampments.
"I've been very scared," said Carmen Perez, who has taken shelter at a plaza near the National Pantheon in the city center.
The plaza is humming with activity; Venezuelans arrive by car, motorcycle, or on foot to deliver supplies -- occasionally stopping to say a prayer as they try and cope with one the biggest natural disasters in the country's modern history.
Perez, 65, is waiting for engineers to assess her 12-story building to see if it's safe for her and her family to return.
"The police have helped us, and a young woman took our information this morning," she said about the work authorities are doing. She added that people in the square need more tents to protect them from rain.
As she waited in the plaza, Perez contemplated her future. "I love my apartment, but I have been afraid to go back. I've been very nervous because of the earthquakes that have occurred. We're in God's hands."
Another woman stranded at the encampment, 48-year-old Loreilbert Vera, explained that her building on PanteonAvenue suffered damage and she is now staying in a large tent with several neighbors.
"My husband and I were on the street when the earthquake struck; my daughters were inside the house, and when we managed to get into the apartment, we were stunned," she said. "All the walls are cracked. Thank God the columns and beams are intact, but some walls have completely detached from the ceiling slab. The main bathroom is destroyed."
She said she has managed to return to the apartment on a couple of occasions to retrieve belongings, but it's too dangerous to stay there for long.
Jorge Rodriguez said as many as 774 buildings had been damaged or completely destroyed, and preliminary estimates by the UNDP show $6.7 billion in "direct physical damage."
Vera is one of thousands of Venezuelans who have been forced outdoors as hundreds of aftershocks leave residents wary of returning to their buildings.
"We're staying here, sleeping, as best we can. It rained on us, and the police tried to bring some tents," she said.
Despite her circumstances, Vera understands that the situation could have been much worse.
As rescue efforts reached their fourth day on Sunday, volunteers desperately picked through the rubble for signs of life and people were gathering at the city's morgue to identify bodies.
"We're very nervous, but at the same time grateful because the outlook was very bleak," she said. "We could have arrived to find a completely different situation because other buildings collapsed."
Thankful to be alive, Vera added: "We cling to our faith. I hope that through this, people will seek the Lord more."
