The second flight with a total of 15 tons of humanitarian aid bound for Venezuela departed this Saturday from the country’s main airport, on the outskirts of Montevideo, to assist the population affected by the double earthquake that occurred in that country on June 24.

The cargo consists, in particular, of health supplies, medicines, and hygiene kits and was organized inter-institutionally to respond to the needs prioritized by the Venezuelan Government for the emergency response stage, as highlighted by a statement from the Uruguayan Presidency.

“What is intended in humanitarian assistance is that the assistance provided is adjusted to demand and not to supply,” said the director of the National Emergency System, Leandro Palomeque.

The Hercules KC 130-H Air Force plane that was going to travel this Tuesday finally did not leave due to “a change of rules” by the Caribbean country, as reported a day earlier by the Uruguayan Minister of National Defense, Sandra Lazo.

This problem was solved during the week after dialogues between authorities of both countries, which on the Uruguayan side were headed by the chancellor, Mario Lubetkin.

“I am not arriving at a territory without any problems. I am arriving at a territory that has all the inconveniences after a catastrophe like the one that happened. In that context, the rules of the game also change,” explained Lazo on Monday.

The minister added: “There is a new change of rules and that change of rules has to do with costs for whoever arrives at the airport with certain supplies.”

Once this was resolved, the flight departed on Saturday morning.

The death toll from the double earthquake on June 24 in Venezuela rose to 5,069 this Friday, after 139 new deaths were added, reported the president of Parliament, Jorge Rodríguez, who also detailed that the number of injured remains at 16,740.

The number of homeless people remains at 17,907, according to the balance released on the Telegram account of the also brother of the acting president, Delcy Rodríguez.

The authorities, according to Rodríguez’s report, have assisted 128,324 families affected by the 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude earthquakes, while 21,235 people are in 107 temporary camps.

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