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The 74-hour search for the family of Argentina soccer star Lucas Trejo ended over the weekend after rescuers recovered the bodies of his wife and two children from the rubble of the apartment building that collapsed in Wednesday’s two earthquakes.
Trejo, 38, a central defender for Venezuelan club Sport Maritimo de La Guaira, was in Caracas with his team when the 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude earthquakes hit the country’s northern coast.
Soccer player Lucas Trejo lost his wife and two children after Venezuela’s devastating earthquake. (Photo credit: FEDERICO PARRA/AFP via Getty Images) ((Photo credit should read FEDERICO PARRA/AFP via Getty Images))
After learning that his family’s apartment building had collapsed in Playa Grande, La Guaira, he immediately traveled to the disaster zone to join the search.
“Our building in Playa Grande collapsed. I don’t know anything about my family,” Trejo wrote on Instagram in the early hours of the search. “Please pray for them and share this message if anyone saw them. I want to believe they weren’t there.”
33 RESCUED FROM VENEZUELAN RUBRIN: THE SURVIVAL WINDOW FAILS DESPERATELY WITH ALMOST 50,000 MISSING
Trejo’s father and brother traveled from Argentina to help firefighters, military personnel and volunteers search through the debris.
Twin earthquakes devastated Venezuela’s northern coast, leaving widespread destruction as emergency workers continue recovery efforts. (Photo by Javier Campos/image alliance via Getty Images) ((Photo by Javier Campos/image alliance via Getty Images))
The search ended after rescuers found the bodies of Trejo’s wife, Yanina Maranella, and their children, Aaron and Ainhoa.
The tragedy led to an outpouring of support from across the South American football community.
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Argentine soccer player Edson Tortolero, a close friend of Trejo, mourned the death of the family.
“Today my heart breaks into a thousand pieces,” Tortolero wrote. “There are no words that can ease this much pain. I pray to God to give Lucas the strength to endure this unimaginable loss.”
Club Sport Maritimo de La Guaira confirmed the deaths in a statement on Sunday.
A 74-hour search ended in heartbreak for defenseman Lucas Trejo after rescuers found his family. (Photo by NORBERTO DUARTE/AFP) (Photo by NORBERTO DUARTE/AFP via Getty Images) ((Photo by NORBERTO DUARTE / AFP) (Photo by NORBERTO DUARTE/AFP via Getty Images))
“We join the grief that overwhelms the player Lucas Trejo over the passing of his wife, Yanina Maranella, and his children, Aaron and Ainhoa Trejo,” the club said. “Peace to their souls and comfort to Lucas and all his loved ones.”
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Trejo’s family is among the victims of the earthquake that devastated parts of Venezuela’s northern coast. Emergency crews remain in the region as recovery efforts continue.
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