Deported from the U.S., Then Hit by Earthquakes: A Story of Survival

What Happened?

Imagine this: You’re sent back to your home country after living in the United States for years. You’ve barely had time to catch your breath when the ground starts shaking — violently. That’s exactly what happened to more than 100 people who were deported from the United States to Venezuela.

On the same day they arrived back in Venezuela, two massive earthquakes — measuring 7.2 and 7.5 on the Richter scale — struck the country. The hotel where these deportees were staying collapsed, trapping people under the rubble.

Important Point: The Venezuelan government reported that more than 1,700 people were killed in these earthquakes.

The Deportation Flight

Here’s how the deportees ended up in that hotel:

1. A deportation flight took off from Miami, Florida.
2. On board were 146 Venezuelans, including 19 women and 7 children.
3. The flight landed in Venezuela just hours before the earthquakes hit.
4. The deportees were transported to a hotel called Hotel Santuario La Llanada in La Guaira, a coastal city.
5. At the hotel, they received medical exams and identification documents.
6. They were told they would be sent home the next day.

But the next day never came as planned.

Surviving the Earthquake

Lisbeth Portillo’s Story

Lisbeth Portillo, 58, was one of the deportees staying at the hotel. Here’s what she experienced:

• She was in a second-floor room with 16 other women.
• She stepped onto a balcony to look at the sea and noticed the sky looked black and it was extremely hot.
• When she returned to her room and lay on a bed, she suddenly felt herself being violently shaken.
• She heard loud cracking sounds and saw the women around her start falling.
• Everyone was screaming for help.
• Almost immediately, a second earthquake hit.
• Portillo fell and got buried under a heavy beam, but the shaking shifted the debris just enough for her to escape.
• She walked about 5 kilometers through the streets with roughly 20 other survivors, looking for help.
• They saw people running — some naked, some barefoot — all emerging from the rubble.
• Eventually, they reached a National Guard building where they could finally call their families.

"I was born again; God gave me a second chance," Portillo said. "I am traumatized," she added, weeping.

Jenny Rodriguez’s Story

Jenny Rodriguez, 24, was also on that flight and trapped in the hotel rubble. She managed to free one hand from the debris, grabbed a fellow deportee by his pants, and begged for help. Thanks to him, she was pulled out alive.

The Bigger Picture: Deportation Flights

This story also sheds light on how deportation flights work:

• ICE Flight Monitor, a project by the organization Human Rights First, tracks deportation flights from the United States.
• In May alone, they tracked 288 deportation flights to 38 countries, including places like Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Cameroon, Chile, and the Ivory Coast.
• The U.S. ran 12 deportation flights to Venezuela in May, operating three days a week.
• These flights to Venezuela resumed in February 2025 after a 13-month pause.
• The deportations were part of the Trump administration’s push for mass deportations.

Families Left in the Dark

Not everyone was as lucky as Portillo and Rodriguez. Some families are still searching for answers.

• Liliana Rojas has been desperately trying to locate her 33-year-old partner.
• The detention center in El Paso, Texas, where he was held only told her that he had been deported.
• "No one is giving an answer about anything," Rojas said.

A Mother Reunited with Her Children

Portillo had crossed the U.S.-Mexico border in November 2021 and had a pending asylum claim. After the earthquake, she couldn’t even remember her children’s phone numbers. She called her husband in the United States.

• "Cesar, I’m alive. Help me," she told him.
• Her husband couldn’t believe it at first, saying, "It can’t be."
• She insisted: "I’m alive, I made it out of the rubble, I’m alive."
• Her husband called their children, who picked her up and reunited with their mother the very next night.

"I was born that day; on the 24th, I was born again," said Portillo, who had lived in South Florida for more than four years.

Summary

• Over 100 people deported from the U.S. were staying at a hotel in La Guaira, Venezuela, when two devastating earthquakes struck.
• The hotel collapsed, trapping deportees under rubble. Survivors like Lisbeth Portillo and Jenny Rodriguez managed to escape and find help.
• The earthquakes killed more than 1,700 people in Venezuela.
• The deportation flight from Miami carried 146 Venezuelans, including women and children, and arrived just hours before the disaster.
• Deportation flights to Venezuela resumed in February 2025 after a 13-month pause, as part of broader U.S. deportation efforts.
• Some families are still searching for loved ones with no answers from authorities.
• Survivors described feeling "born again" after escaping the rubble and reuniting with their families.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How many people were on the deportation flight from Miami to Venezuela?
A: There were 146 Venezuelans on board, including 19 women and 7 children.

Q: What were the magnitudes of the earthquakes that hit Venezuela?
A: Two earthquakes struck — one measuring 7.2 and the other 7.5 on the Richter scale.

Q: Where were the deportees staying when the earthquakes hit?
A: They were staying at Hotel Santuario La Llanada in La Guaira, Venezuela.

Q: When did deportation flights to Venezuela resume?
A: They resumed in February 2025 after a 13-month pause.

Q: How many people were killed in the earthquakes?
A: The Venezuelan government reported more than 1,700 deaths.