The search for the family of Argentine soccer player Lucas Trejo concluded after rescue teams recovered the bodies of his wife and two children from the rubble. The family’s apartment building collapsed during twin earthquakes in Venezuela.
Lucas Trejo, a 38-year-old center back for Sport Maritimo de La Guaira, was in Caracas when the earthquakes struck. Measuring 7.2 and 7.5, they devastated the country’s northern coast.
“Our building in Playa Grande collapsed. I don’t know anything about my family,” Trejo shared on Instagram during the search. “Please pray for them and share this message in case someone saw them. I want to believe they weren’t there.”
Rescue efforts lasted 74 hours before the bodies of his wife, Yanina Maranella, and his children, Aaron and Ainhoa, were recovered. Trejo’s father and brother came from Argentina to assist in the search alongside firefighters and volunteers.
In a statement, Club Sport Maritimo de La Guaira expressed their condolences, saying, “We join the grief that overwhelms player Lucas Trejo for the passing of his wife, Yanina Maranella, and of his children, Aaron and Ainhoa Trejo. Peace to their souls and comfort for Lucas and all his loved ones.”
Support poured in from the soccer community. Fellow Argentine footballer Edson Tortolero, a friend of Trejo, mourned the loss, saying, “Today my heart breaks into a thousand pieces. There are no words that can ease so much pain. I ask God to give Lucas strength to endure this unimaginable loss.”
The death of Trejo’s family marks one of the many tragedies caused by the earthquakes along Venezuela’s northern coast. Recovery efforts continue as emergency crews remain in the affected regions.