A man has been rescued alive after spending eight days trapped beneath the rubble of a building that collapsed during the twin earthquakes that struck Venezuela, as the country’s official death toll rose to 2,595.

The survivor, identified as Hernán Gil, was pulled from the debris after emergency teams spent days working to reach him following the detection of signs of life beneath an estimated 140 tonnes of collapsed concrete.

Venezuela’s Acting President, Delcy Rodríguez, visited Gil in hospital on Thursday, describing his survival as “a living miracle.”

In a video shared on social media, Rodríguez praised the efforts of rescuers and said Gil’s rescue offered hope amid one of the country’s deadliest natural disasters.

Gil’s rescue came as authorities confirmed that 2,595 people had lost their lives in the earthquakes that struck on June 24, while tens of thousands remain missing.

Speaking at a press briefing, Rodríguez described the disaster as “a natural tragedy on a scale we never imagined” and rejected criticism that the government’s response had been inadequate.

“We’ve done everything in our power, and we’ll continue to do everything in our power and more,” she said, adding that thousands of emergency personnel were deployed immediately after the earthquakes.

The complex rescue operation involved teams from Venezuela, Chile, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Mexico, Portugal and the United States.

A Chilean firefighter involved in the operation described it as the most technically challenging rescue mission of his career.

Costa Rican Red Cross paramedic Allan Madrigal, who first detected Gil’s faint cries for help on Sunday, recalled the emotional moment.

“It was an emotional moment,” Madrigal said, explaining that he initially questioned whether he had actually heard someone beneath the rubble before asking a colleague to confirm the sounds.

Gil, a security guard, had been on duty inside a small concrete booth in the basement parking area near the Galerias Playa Grande shopping mall when the earthquakes struck.

Rescuers believe the reinforced booth created a protective space that shielded him from the weight of the collapsed structure.

Throughout the operation, emergency workers supplied Gil with water and intravenous fluids while engineers carefully removed unstable debris around him.

The rescue effort was repeatedly hampered as narrow access tunnels collapsed several times, forcing crews to proceed cautiously to avoid triggering further cave-ins.

After days of excavation, rescuers finally established visual contact with Gil using a small camera inserted through the rubble.

Footage from inside the collapsed building showed firefighters speaking to the trapped survivor, who appeared alert despite the ordeal. Rescue teams had earlier provided him with a face mask and protective goggles to shield him from dust as work continued around him.

Marco Antonio Franco of the Mexican Red Cross described Gil as remarkably upbeat throughout the operation.

“He even asked for hydration drinks of specific flavours he likes,” Franco told Mexican media, adding that rescue workers gladly fulfilled the request.

According to Franco, rescuers maintained constant conversations with Gil about his family and the progress of the operation to keep his morale high until he was safely brought to the surface.

For Madrigal, who was taking part in his first international rescue mission, the experience left a lasting impression.

“The person who came here a week ago is not the same person who will return to Costa Rica,” he said.