Argentina football player’s wife, children found dead in Venezuela earthquake
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A 74-hour manhunt for the family of Argentina soccer star Lucas Trejo ended this weekend after rescuers pulled the bodies of his wife and two children from the rubble of a building that collapsed in Wednesday’s twin earthquakes.
Trejo, 38, a defender for the Venezuelan team Sport Maritimo de La Guaira, was in Caracas with his team when an earthquake measuring 7.2 and 7.5 hit the northern coast of the country.
Soccer player Lucas Trejo lost his wife and two children after the devastating earthquake in Venezuela. (Photo credit: FEDERICO PARRA/AFP via Getty Images) ((Image credit should read FEDERICO PARRA/AFP via Getty Images))
After learning that his family’s building had collapsed in Playa Grande, La Guaira, he immediately went to the disaster site to join the search.
“Our building in Playa Grande collapsed. I don’t know anything about my family,” Trejo wrote on Instagram during the first hours of the search. “Please pray for them and pass on this message if anyone saw them. I want to believe that they were not there.”
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Trejo’s father and brother traveled from Argentina to help firefighters, military personnel and volunteers search the debris.
A pair of earthquakes have devastated the northern coast of Venezuela, leaving extensive damage as emergency workers continue recovery efforts. (Photo by Javier Campos/photo alliance via Getty Images) ((Photo by Javier Campos/photo alliance via Getty Images))
The search ended after rescuers found the bodies of Trejo’s wife, Yanina Maranella, and their children, Aaron and Ainhoa.
The tragedy sparked an outpouring of support from the entire South American soccer community.
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Fellow Argentine soccer player Edson Tortolero, Trejo’s best friend, mourned the death of the family.
“Today my heart breaks into a thousand pieces,” Tortolero wrote. “There are no words that can ease this pain. I ask God to give Lucas the strength to endure this unimaginable loss.”
Club Sport Maritimo de La Guaira confirmed the death in a statement on Sunday.
A 74-hour search ended tragically for defender Lucas Trejo after rescuers found his family. (Photo by NORBERTO DUARTE / AFP) (Photo by NORBERTO DUARTE/AFP via Getty Images) ((Photo by NORBERTO DUARTE / AFP) (Photo by NORBERTO DUARTE/AFP via Getty Images))
“We sympathize with the grief of player Lucas Trejo over the passing of his wife, Yanina Maranella, and his children, Aaron and Ainhoa Trejo,” said the team. “Peace to their souls and comfort to Lucas and all his loved ones.”
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Trejo’s family is among the victims of the earthquake that devastated parts of Venezuela’s northern coast. Emergency workers remain in the region as recovery efforts continue.
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