Portuguese baker Pedro Farias was “reborn” when he was reunited with his daughters Stephanie and Fatima, with whom he lost touch when they were unable to return home due to bad weather in the Venezuelan state of Merida (southwest of the country).

Pedro Farias, a baker and native of Aveiro, is one of 25 Portuguese residents in Tovar and Zea, places where at least 20 people have died in the last week due to heavy rains that have caused landslides, landslides and floods in these municipalities.

“When I saw my daughters, it was like being born again. They were taking a “cook” course. [de cozinha] in El Penyon [povoação vizinha] and it was raining heavily. Thank God, they were blocked, that they stayed there, ”he explained to the Lusa agency.

Pedro Farias insisted that he was “very afraid not to know about them. [das filhas]”and because in 1999 there was another major storm that affected another region of the state of Merida.

According to the baker, his daughter once made more than a hundred “arepa” (a type of cornball that is flattened, cooked and stuffed instead of breakfast bread) at home, which they distributed to people who had lost their homes. “There is a part of the Goods that has suffered greatly (…) it is indescribable for those who know this before and see it now,” he stressed.

According to Pedro Farias, bad weather intensified on Monday night, when telecommunications services and electricity “stopped working”. “They have already repaired the phone, but we still have no power supply,” he stressed, pointing out that they used gasoline from the cars for the generator, which they use to work in the house and to charge the cell phone battery, ”he explained.

He explained that “it was raining, but not so hard” and that the authorities “unreliably opened the road.” Farias regrets that bad weather exacerbates “an already difficult situation in the country”, especially in Tovar, a place he says is “a little forgotten”, and with infrastructure problems. “But now almost everything is missing. People have lost their homes, household utensils, refrigerators, kitchens, and many people were left on the street, ”he said.

As for the other Portuguese from Tovar and Zea, he explained that he was able to find out that they were doing well, that there were “no victims” among the local Portuguese community. Pedro Farias insisted that the honorary consul of Portugal in Merida Aurister Pinto was “a special angel, a helping hand. She was anxious communicating with the Portuguese, sending messages and very cooperative. “

On August 26, at least 25 descendants of the Portuguese and Portuguese were left without electricity, mobile communications and partially isolated in the municipalities of Tovar and Zea due to bad weather in the Venezuelan state of Merida. According to the honorary consul of Portugal in Merida, Aurister Pinto, these are three families with Portuguese-Venezuelan children and their descendants, who are engaged in trade, baking and agriculture.

He explained that in the municipalities of Tovar and Zea heavy rains caused landslides and strong flows of water in rivers and streams. Aurister Pinto also explained that he was able to find out that these Portuguese were fine in their homes, but “partially isolated” since “only motorcycles and dual traction vehicles [tração nas quatro rodas] they can get to “these places because the stream has diverged.”

“They [os afetados] they are asking for help by air, especially for perishable food, water, clothing and medicine, ”Pinto said, adding that the Archdiocese of Merida, the Red Cross, Caritas and the Rotary Club support the request. …

According to preliminary data from the civil protection service, “more than 600 houses” were completely destroyed, and another 804 houses were partially damaged.