In Venezuela, one month after two devastating earthquakes that damaged health facilities and forced roughly 21,000 people to leave their homes, thousands of pregnant women and new mothers urgently need medical care, adequate food and safe shelter, Save the Children warns. United Nations estimates indicate that among those affected are about 36,700 pregnant women, roughly 4,000 of whom are expected to give birth in the next month—an average of about 130 births per day. The June 24 earthquake destroyed and damaged dozens of health facilities, interrupting essential maternal and child health services. Women told Save the Children staff that among the more than 5,000 people who died in the disaster were gynecologists, obstetricians and pediatricians.

In the state of La Guaira, the area hardest hit by the quake, the main pediatric hospital remains closed and the most complex cases must be transferred to the capital, Caracas. Many pregnant women, caregivers and their children have lost their homes and now live in temporary shelters where access to prenatal care, nutritious food, safe drinking water and sanitation is limited. Yohana (a pseudonym), 23 and expecting her first child, was alone at home in one of the hardest-hit areas of La Guaira when the earthquake caused her building to collapse. “I ran out barefoot wearing only the clothes I had at home. I lost my glasses — I couldn’t see, or could see very little. When the whole house fell down I was terrified. In that moment I didn’t feel pain in my belly, but in the chaos I didn’t know if I was injured or not. To be honest, I was only thinking about saving my life,” she says.

Yennifer (a pseudonym), also 23 and breastfeeding her four-month-old daughter, has struggled to care for her own health since the earthquake. “I couldn’t eat and I had very bad headaches,” she says. “I couldn’t sleep because I felt like everything kept shaking. It was very hard and every small movement put me on edge, making me constantly anxious. Since Carmen’s pediatrician died in the earthquake, my biggest worry is how I’ll find someone to care for her. We don’t even have money. Everything feels unbearable and I can’t rest.”

“Every day in Venezuela about 130 babies are born to mothers whose lives have been completely upended by the earthquake and who are experiencing very high levels of stress,” explains Fátima Andraca, director of Save the Children in Venezuela. “Many are giving birth amid uncertainty, displacement and severely compromised health services. We are receiving alarming reports of newborns falling ill in camps where families sleep on damp mattresses, exposed to rain and living in poor sanitation conditions. At the same time, many women are grieving lost loved ones, coping with trauma and worrying about where to receive health care after losing trusted gynecologists, obstetricians and pediatricians. Pregnancy and caring for a newborn are challenging in any circumstance. No mother should have to face them while living in a tent, mourning her family and fearing she cannot secure the care her child needs.”

Save the Children reiterates that in both the humanitarian response and the recovery phase it is essential to prioritize pregnant women and their children, including the postpartum and breastfeeding periods, through urgent coordination, adequate funding and targeted interventions. The organization urges governments, international donors and humanitarian partners to ensure that pregnant and breastfeeding women affected by the earthquake have continuous access to quality antenatal, delivery and postnatal care; specialized services for infant and young child feeding; nutritious food; safe shelter; potable water and sanitation; and essential newborn supplies, both immediately and in the months ahead.