For six years, 23-year-old Abelardo Rincón built a new life in Georgia. He worked at a car dealership, got married, and looked forward to welcoming his first child. That future changed abruptly when US immigration authorities detained him during President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement campaign.
After arriving on June 24, he briefly contacted relatives in Atlanta while still under government supervision. He told them that he and other deportees were staying at a hotel near Venezuela’s coast.
Only hours later, disaster struck.
Two powerful earthquakes devastated parts of Venezuela, leaving at least 2,200 people dead, more than 10,000 injured, and tens of thousands unaccounted for, according to United Nations figures. Rincón was among a number of Flight 164 passengers reported missing after the catastrophe.
For families already coping with the shock of detention and deportation, the earthquakes created a new nightmare. Many spent days searching hospitals, morgues, and emergency shelters for any information about their loved ones.
The US Department of Homeland Security confirmed that the deportation flight had safely arrived in Venezuela but said responsibility for passengers ended once they were no longer in US custody.
The deportations occurred as part of the Trump administration’s broader effort to strengthen border security and remove migrants living in the United States without legal status. Officials say hundreds of thousands have been deported while millions more have left voluntarily in recent years.
Upon arrival in Venezuela, passengers from the flight—including women and children—were reportedly housed at Hotel Santuario La Llanada in La Guaira after undergoing medical examinations and processing. The region later became one of the areas hardest hit by the earthquakes, with severe structural damage and building collapses.
Communication in the disaster zone has been limited, leaving families desperate for answers.
Rincón’s grandfather, Jose Rincón, searched extensively for his grandson. He visited morgues, viewed hundreds of bodies, and attempted to reach the destroyed hotel. Authorities denied access, reportedly telling him there were no signs of life at the site.
Others faced similar uncertainty. Darwin Eliecer Serrano Lopez, 35, called relatives shortly after returning to Venezuela following four years in the United States. Less than an hour later, the first earthquake struck. His family searched for days without finding any trace of him.
The relatives of 28-year-old Daniel Alejandro Nunez also launched a frantic search after receiving a phone call from him shortly before the disaster. They checked hospitals and morgues but struggled to obtain clear information about his whereabouts.
For many families, the emotional toll has been overwhelming. Loved ones who had already endured years of separation suddenly faced the possibility that a long-awaited reunion would never happen.
Not every story ended in tragedy. Some Flight 164 passengers survived the collapse and were later rescued from the rubble. Lisbeth Portillo, 58, recalled being inside a crowded second-floor hotel room when the building suddenly gave way around her.
She survived and described the experience as a second chance at life.
Others emerged with life-changing injuries. Anderson Daniel Salcedo, 22, was eventually found at a hospital in Caracas after spending nearly two days trapped beneath debris. Doctors amputated both of his legs before his family was able to locate him.
His grandmother said the family had no way to contact him and feared the worst. Despite his injuries, they remain grateful he survived.
As rescue efforts continue, many families are still searching for answers. Some are hoping for reunions, while others simply want confirmation of what happened to their loved ones in the aftermath of a disaster that turned a deportation flight home into a tragedy.