People with disabilities risk being left behind as Venezuela earthquake response gathers pace

Needs assessments by Humanity & Inclusion reveal inaccessible shelters, loss of mobility aids and urgent need for inclusive humanitarian response.

The humanitarian response to the devastating earthquakes in Venezuela must put people with disabilities at its centre, Humanity & Inclusion (HI) warns, as needs assessments reveal inaccessible emergency shelters, lost mobility aids and urgent need for inclusive humanitarian response.

With more than 2,200 people dead, 11,200 injured and nearly 12,700 left homeless after several thousand buildings collapsed or were damaged, Humanity & Inclusion’s teams are assessing the needs of affected communities to help ensure the response is coordinated, effective and inclusive.

Understanding what people actually need is essential.

“A lot of supplies are being distributed, but in an inappropriate way. Yesterday I was at a centre where people told me they no longer needed clothes; they were already swamped with t-shirts and trousers. However, they were desperately short of underwear. This clearly shows that the humanitarian response must be coordinated and that it is absolutely essential to listen to the people themselves; they are the ones who know what they need,” explains Yohanna Talloli, Humanity & Inclusion’s inclusive humanitarian action specialist in Caracas.

People with disabilities face additional barriers

During the various assessment missions carried out in La Guaira, Humanity & Inclusion’s teams found that the emergency reception centres are not accessible to people who use wheelchairs or crutches, nor to people who are deaf or blind. 

“The bathrooms are unsuitable - too narrow or poorly laid out - the access points are raised or obstructed, and the places are always very noisy… There is a great deal of work to be done to make these shelters truly inclusive, to turn them into safe havens for everyone,” explains Yohanna.

In the aftermath of the earthquakes, many people with disabilities have also lost essential mobility aids, including wheelchairs, crutches, walking sticks and walking frames, as well as identity documents and disability certificates.

Humanity & Inclusion is working to identify these needs so that people with disabilities are included in the emergency response. A lack of disability awareness can unintentionally exclude people from receiving appropriate support.

“Yesterday, I spoke to a lady who told me she had taken charge of a group of around forty children. When I arrived on site, they weren’t children at all but adults with Down’s syndrome. This lack of understanding, if not identified and addressed, risks leading to aid that is very, very exclusionary.” adds Yohanna.

Specialist rehabilitation and mental health support urgently needed

Humanity & Inclusion is one of the few organisations in Venezuela with expertise in emergency physical and functional rehabilitation. As hospitals and communities respond to the large number of people injured in the disaster, our team are identifying rehabilitation needs and sourcing appropriate mobility aids based on individual circumstances.

“There is also a great need for mobility aids – wheelchairs, walking sticks, crutches, etc. We’ve identified what was missing so that we can provide this equipment as quickly as possible, whilst taking people’s individual circumstances fully into account. For example, for someone living in a rural area with muddy and uneven paths, a wheelchair isn’t necessarily the most suitable option,” explains Yohanna.

Humanity & Inclusion is also preparing to respond to growing mental health needs, with particular attention to people with intellectual disabilities, autism and neurodiversity.

“There are many psychologists in Venezuela, but very few know how to support people with these kinds of differences. I’ve met some psychologists sent to the shelters who didn’t know how to support autistic people experiencing intense emotional stress.” explains Yohanna.

To support an inclusive response, Humanity & Inclusion is working closely with organisations representing people with disabilities, including Conapdis, Venezuela's National Council on Disability.

Planning beyond the emergency

Humanity & Inclusion is also calling for longer-term planning as emergency shelters may need to accommodate displaced people for extended periods. Accessible sanitation, healthcare, education and protection must be considered from the outset, particularly for people with disabilities and other vulnerable groups.

“Emergency accommodation centres may well have to be converted into long-term reception centres, with all the new needs that this creates in terms of access to sanitation and hygiene, healthcare, education… We must take all this into account when planning the response and anticipate the new risks that precarious living conditions and overcrowding may bring. People who do not know one another are now living together, with women, men and children all mixed together. There is no longer any privacy, and we must be very vigilant, particularly in protecting women and children from potential abuse,” says Yohanna.

Notes

• Spokespersons available upon request.
• How to Donate : Humanity & Inclusion UK launched an emergency appeal to support our life-saving response in Venezuela: https://donate.humanity-inclusion.org.uk/give/Venezuela-appeal 

Humanity & Inclusion’s response in Venezuela:

Humanity & Inclusion has been present in Venezuela for several years and our teams, already on the ground, have launched an emergency response. Following an initial needs assessment, they are now organising emergency physical and functional rehabilitation support – a crucial intervention in the immediate aftermath of a disaster to care for and provide relief to the injured and prevent long-term disabilities.  

In addition, Humanity & Inclusion is supporting families who have lost everything in the disaster, particularly in the areas of mental health and psychosocial support, as well as organising distributions of essential items (blankets, soap, toothbrushes, etc.). Humanity & Inclusion’s priority is to provide an urgent and inclusive response to the affected populations, paying particular attention to the situation and needs of those often overlooked, such as people with disabilities.    

Our response includes:  

• Distributing blankets, soap and hygiene items
• Providing support for people with disabilities and injured people
• Offering psychological support to traumatised survivors
• deployment of the rehabilitation team, which will care for the seriously injured, treating amputations, fractures and severe injuries, and working to prevent long-term disabilities