A mother lost her life while safeguarding her infant daughter during the catastrophic series of earthquakes in Venezuela.
Hector Bello, a soccer player for Marítimo de La Guaira, revealed on Instagram that his wife, , perished as she protected their 1-year-old daughter, Alana, from the earthquakes on Wednesday, June 24.
“You’ll always be our favorite hero, Mommy. I’m going to make sure our baby remembers how wonderful you were, how much you loved her,” Hector wrote in a post accompanying a photo of Andrea shared on Instagram on Friday, June 26.
“I’ll tell her the story of how you saved her, how you gave your own life for our daughter, how you were a brave woman who, even with your last breaths, never abandoned her,” he continued.
Venezuela hit by 7.2 magnitude earthquake
Venezuela experienced a magnitude 7.2 earthquake, which was soon succeeded by a magnitude 7.5 earthquake in what has been described as a “severe seismic doublet sequence,” as reported by the U.S. Geological Survey. This occurrence is thought to be the most significant earthquake in the South American nation in more than a hundred years.
Cumaná de Campeones issues statement
The soccer media and promotional group in Venezuela, Cumaná de Campeones, verified through an Instagram post that Andrea was discovered dead in the debris of the building that collapsed where she resided after the earthquakes.
“[Their] daughter survived the collapse of the building where the entire family lived,” the organization said.
“The entire state of Sucre and the entire football community embrace you and stand with you in respect and solidarity, hoping you find peace in this time of sorrow,” it added.
Hector Bello calls his wife Hector Bello ‘a hero’
Héctor referred to his dead wife as a “hero” for rescuing their daughter, and in a subsequent Instagram post, he expressed his profound sorrow regarding her passing.
“My daughter … I need you to be strong. Just wait a little longer. I need you to be the one to heal my heart, which is in pieces,” he wrote. “You won’t see your daddy strong or smiling like always, but I promise to heal and make you the happiest girl in the world.”
“Now it’s just you and me and your mommy watching over us from heaven. I know Andrea will give me strength,” Héctor continued. “…Through all this suffering, I know that if she had a minute to say something to me, she would tell me to protect you with my life like she did…”
The number of fatalities from the earthquakes in Venezuela has increased to 920, with 3,360 individuals reported injured, as confirmed by Jorge Rodríguez, the president of Venezuela’s National Assembly, on Friday, according to the BBC.
Approximately 50,000 people are still unaccounted for, as previously reported by PEOPLE. This incident is considered the most significant earthquake to strike the South American nation in more than a hundred years.
