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· collected 2026-09-06 · by Anna-catherine Brigida And Juan Pablo Arraez The Associated Press
A family in Venezuela is searching for their missing 18-year-old relative, Andrés Molina, who went missing during two catastrophic earthquakes that hit the country on June 24. The government estimates that 1,500 people are still missing, while an independent account puts the number at tens of thousands. Antonella Molina and her nephew Pedro have been leading the search effort, handing out flyers and getting tips from neighbors, but so far no concrete information has led to Andrés' whereabouts. Without trust in government assistance, the family is relying on their own efforts to find Andrés, fueled by "a lot of things that give us hope," according to Antonella.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-06,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Antonella Molina, her nephew Pedro Molina and a group of friends set out at 8 a.m. on a recent Saturday, hands full of flyers, walking carefully through the rubble that remains throughout La Guaira after two catastrophic back-to-back earthquakes 10 weeks ago.
asserted
that → set → earthquakes
Their mission is to find 18-year-old Andrés Molina — Antonella’s nephew and Pedro’s cousin — who they haven’t heard from since the double earthquakes hit Venezuela on June 24.
asserted
earthquakes → find → June
Andrés is among tens of thousands who remain missing, according to an independent account, far surpassing the government estimate of 1,500.
uncertain
who → remain → 1,500
Weeks before, Antonella and other relatives pulled the bodies of Andrés’ mother and brother from the collapsed remains of their 10-story apartment building that collapsed in La Guaira, the coastal area just north of the capital Caracas that was one of the hardest hit.
asserted
that → pull → hit
The building once housed more than 30 people but there was no sign of Andrés, not even the backpack he always carried.
asserted
he → house → Andrés
Neighbors told the family they have seen Andrés wandering the destruction collecting scrap metal; they hold out hope that he survived.
asserted
he → tell → hope
“There are a lot of things that give us hope,” Antonella said.
asserted
Antonella → be → hope
Searching without government help
Government figures of 6,500 dead and 1,500 have been widely questioned by people on the ground, although the Venezuelan government has said its response was quick and statistics are “rigorously verified.”
asserted
statistics → search → ground
With little trust in authorities, Andrés’ family and friends are the ones taking charge to get the answers they need.
“We’ve never had support from the government to help us find the people disappeared.
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us → take → people
Never,” Antonella said.
asserted
Antonella → say → ?
And they are determined to keep searching on their own until they find him.
asserted
they → determine → him
In the days after the quakes, neighbors said they saw Andrés wandering around with an apparent head injury.
asserted
Andrés → say → injury
The family called shelters, hospitals and morgues but there was no news of Andrés.
asserted
family → call → Andrés
They turned to putting up flyers around the area with his photo and a number to call.
asserted
They → turn → photo
The calls rolled in, reporting sightings at a nearby golf course, park or restaurant.
asserted
calls → roll → course
But Andrés was never there when they showed up.
asserted
they → show → ?
When they would ask around, people told them stories of seeing the young man in the photo, often trying to give food to cats, his favorite animal.
asserted
people → ask → cats
Just the day before the search, police told Antonella they saw him collecting scrap material nearby, further fueling their optimism.
asserted
him → tell → optimism
Setting out to find him again
On the Saturday of the renewed search, about 15 friends and relatives walked the streets, past the busted windows and collapsed walls as the noise of ongoing construction equipment rumbled in the background.
asserted
noise → set → background
Antonella approached neighbors and construction crews with a warm, Venezuelan greeting of “how are you, mi amor?”
asserted
you → approach → greeting
She explained her hunt for information about her nephew.
asserted
She → explain → nephew
A construction worker said he saw him near the golf course.
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he → say → course
Another woman sitting outside on a plastic chair said she saw the flyers but not Andrés.
asserted
she → sit → flyers
Another man thought he may have seen him at a nearby McDonald’s.
uncertain
he → think → McDonald
But when they said he had tattoos, Antonella knew it wasn’t her nephew.
asserted
it → say → tattoos
The search has been complicated by a family dispute between Andrés’ mother and father — Antonella’s brother and Pedro’s uncle — that has kept them apart for years.
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that → complicate → years
The family tried to stay in touch, but the relationship deteriorated.
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relationship → try → touch
Andrés’ father has been among those searching for him.
asserted
father → search → him
Pedro began talking with his cousin over WhatsApp in the months before the earthquake, but they never met in person, since Pedro lives about six hours away in the state of Anzoategui.
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Pedro → begin → Anzoategui
Still, Pedro wants his cousin to know he is not alone, even though his mother and brother are no longer with him.
“We don’t know how he must feel if he is alive,” Pedro said.
asserted
Pedro → want → him
Ending with anger, pain, sadness
During the afternoon of the search, Antonella and Pedro approach a young woman and handed her a flyer.
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Antonella → end → flyer
“Were you his neighbor?” Antonella asked.
asserted
Antonella → ask → ?
“Yes, from the house next door,” she answered.
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she → answer → house
But she did not have any information on where Andrés is now.
asserted
Andrés → have → information
“If anything, I’ll write this number,” she said.
asserted
she → write → number
Antonella has come to believe that perhaps Andrés doesn’t want to be found.
asserted
Andrés → come → ?
Maybe that is why she keeps finding the flyers damaged with a tear down through his face.
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she → keep → face
The search finished as always at a nearby McDonald’s around 10 p.m., a few hours earlier than usual because Antonella hurt her arm.
asserted
Antonella → finish → arm
“At the end of each search, I always feel anger, helplessness, pain, sadness.
asserted
I → feel → sadness
Even despair,” Antonella said.
asserted
Antonella → say → ?
…and 7 more, not listed.
