In the wake of two devastating earthquakes that ripped through Venezuela last week, a remarkable story of survival has emerged from the rubble, offering a flicker of hope to a nation reeling from catastrophic loss. Two-year-old Kleiber Moran was pulled alive from the collapsed remains of his family home in northern Venezuela’s La Guaira state by a Jordanian search and rescue team in the early hours of Tuesday, six full days after the disaster struck. Now, recovering in a Caracas hospital, the toddler is in the care of his 23-year-old aunt Andreína Sarmiento, who opened up exclusively to the BBC about her overwhelming joy at reuniting with her nephew — and her unwavering hope that Kleiber’s parents, still missing beneath the wreckage, will be found alive too.
Sarmiento, sitting at her nephew’s hospital bedside clutching his hand, recalled the moment she learned of the rescue that stunned the nation. When a friend called from La Guaira with the news, she collapsed to the floor, screaming and crying with a flood of shock and relief, before rushing immediately to meet the toddler. She confirmed that British rescue teams had also made attempts to reach Kleiber before the Jordanian operation ultimately succeeded, a collaborative effort that underscores the global response to Venezuela’s tragedy.
When Sarmiento and Kleiber finally came face to face, the 2-year-old looked up at his aunt and immediately recognized her, saying softly, “Auntie.” In those first hours after rescue, the little boy was in a state of severe shock, crying uncontrollably as he was admitted to the hospital. But after a full night of rest, his condition improved dramatically: by Wednesday, he had stabilized, and now he is playful and responsive, giving his aunt small kisses and telling her when he feels discomfort. As Sarmiento spoke to reporters, Kleiber lay beside her, tucked under a Spiderman blanket, surrounded by donated toys, and occupied with pushing a small toy car across the hospital bed. He shares his ward with other child survivors of the earthquakes, and surprisingly, he suffered no major injuries — only minor scratches on his arms and legs, with no fractures to be found.
For Sarmiento, however, joy is tinged with deep grief and longing. She has committed to raising Kleiber with the same warmth a mother would give, until her sister — Kleiber’s mother Ana Luz — can be found, a outcome she still prays for every day. “I pray to God to give me strength, because he is only two years old and I am not a mother,” she told the BBC. “It hurts me so much, because my sister always used to tell me he was like my son, and now it feels like she’s handing him to me, saying ‘this is your son, this is your responsibility.’”
Sarmiento described an unbreakable bond with her 31-year-old sister, saying the pair spoke every day over video call, and Ana Luz never went anywhere without Kleiber at her side. “Wherever she went, her son went too. Whatever Kleiber wanted, she would do everything to give it to him. If she didn’t have the money, she would call me and say Kleiber wanted this or needed that,” Sarmiento recalled. “She was the person I trusted with all my problems, and every time we spoke on video, Kleiber was right there beside her.” Sarmiento says she is certain Ana Luz stayed by her son’s side through the collapse, and still holds out hope that both she and Kleiber’s father Carlos will be pulled from the rubble alive, just like their little boy.
As the nation grapples with the scale of the disaster, official records already put the confirmed death toll at 2,295 — a number that experts warn will climb far higher in the coming days and weeks. Tens of thousands of people remain unaccounted for, and the United Nations has confirmed it is arranging to deliver 10,000 body bags to support the country’s response efforts. Search and rescue operations are continuing across the hardest-hit regions, even as hopes of finding more survivors fade for most.
Delcy Rodríguez, Venezuela’s interim President, has called Kleiber’s rescue “a source of hope for our people” at a time of overwhelming national sorrow. For Sarmiento, that hope remains personal: “Just as they found my nephew, I have faith that they are going to find my sister and my brother-in-law,” she said. Looking down at her playful, recovering nephew, she added that she believes the toddler survived for a reason: “He has a purpose in the world. When this child grows up, God willing, this will be his story.”