A man has been rescued alive in Venezuela after spending eight days trapped beneath the rubble of a collapsed shopping mall parking structure following a series of devastating earthquakes.Hernán Alberto Gil Flores, 44, who worked as a security guard at the site in La Guaira, was extracted from approximately 8.

8 metres of debris after a complex multi-day rescue operation involving local and international emergency teams, including the Chile Fire Brigade and the Costa Rican Red Cross.

Rescuers first detected signs of life using radar, sonar and sound equipment, before establishing communication and delivering water, food and medication through a hose and syringe system.Video footage showed the moment rescuers made contact with Gil and later his partial emergence from the rubble, visibly weakened but conscious.Officials reported that he remained medically stable after the rescue and was transferred to a medical facility for treatment.His wife described days of anguish before learning he was alive, calling the outcome a moment of relief for the family.

The rescue effort was described as highly dangerous due to ongoing structural instability, with repeated collapses hampering attempts to stabilise tunnels through the debris.

Authorities noted that survival beyond the usual three-day “golden window” following earthquakes is rare, making the outcome particularly extraordinary.

The wider disaster has caused massive destruction across Venezuela, with reports of thousands of deaths and overwhelmed emergency and forensic services, as rescue operations continue across affected regions.