VENEZUELA: “I DON´T EAT MEAT OR FISH ANYMORE BECAUSE OF THE BLACKOUTS”

By: Andrea Salas

Since March, Eleiza Campos has adapted he r diet to the uncertainty of a service that she does not know how long will last, much less when it will return.

“Many times, trusting in the rationing scheme, we buy food and then it spoils because the power doesn’t come back all day. That’s why meat and fish don’t exist in my fridge. My diet has been reduced to canned foods. Mostly I make basic salads of vegetables and fruits that don’t spoil easily and don’t need refrigeration,” she says.

Nutritionist Nayerlin Acosta points out that this situation affects mainly the most vulnerable groups: children and the elderly. For everyone, she explains, it is essential to eat “the three main nutrients to carry out physical activities: carbohydrates, proteins and fats”.

However, the outages force people to eat only the first group and, in certain cases, low quality proteins such as cheese. The specialist warns that canned food consumption can affect people with high blood pressure because of its sodium content.

“Not consuming the necessary proteins, in the long term, leads to malnutrition from the first degrees to the most severe forms, which could result in death.”

“I cook with firewood because i can’t refill the gas cylinder”

In  María Concepción Palacios,  a slum in Maracaibo, there is no piped gas supply. One of the innumerable consequences of the power cuts is the delay in filling domestic cylinders. They can take up to 15 days to be delivered.

Luis Dagand uses a rudimentary alternative to face this deficiency:

“I cook with firewood, especially the grains. I also have a small electric oven, but it is not an option because the power goes out for long periods of time”.

As if that were not enough, a critical issue that adds more weight to the cross that the residents of the state bear is the water crisis, which has been going on for more than a year and has worsened in this scenario.

The fluctuations in electrical power have damaged much of the equipment of the distribution system of Hidrolago, the company in charge of providing water to the western state. Insufficient pumping only supplies selected communities, but most people manage to get water from squares, mains, distributors, churches and even the edges of streams.

Wherever you go, you can see people wandering around with water bottles. On foot or by car, they seek a solution to the issue of drinking water, which the State provides very sparingly.

Some areas of the municipalities of Santa Rita, Cabimas and Maracaibo have over a year of ‘drought’. This leads to the digging of wells in home backyards or on roads to draw flowing water.

“The pipes are dry. We haven’t had water supply for over a year. Basic tasks such as cooking, cleaning and doing the laundry are very complicated. We are saved because a neighbor has supply and he helps us.” This is the story of Alexis González, a resident of San Pedro in Maracaibo.

A whole day to fill up on gasoline

Having fuel has become an odyssey in the region. Overcrowded and almost motionless, long lines of vehicles border the gas stations. Under the beating sun, users must wait four, six, ten, 12 and even 20 hours to fill up on gasoline.

“Yoleida Suarez, resident of Zulia, complains because “the guards dare to close the gas stations to do their dirty business. They say the gas ran out, but they sell it to those who pay them.” At 60 years old and exposed to insecurity, she has spent more than half a day in line.

If it is a massive outage, most gas stations cease to operate, as only 71 have power plants. Even then, the plants must “rest” for 60 minutes every four hours.

In addition, the fuel is rationed at 30 liters per vehicle and many resellers take advantage to offer the same amount for $10 or $15, illegally.

On the drivers’ side, there is a common complaint: the VIP lines, hosted by security officers who charge for everything.

No telephony or internet

Venezuela, especially Zulia, took a leap into the past. The possibilities of communication compete with those of the Stone Age. “No signal”, “network unavailable”, “calls not allowed” and “text message not sent” are just some of the notifications that stop people every time they try to start a conversation over the phone.

Rosana Suárez is a Digitel client, but in her area, in southern Maracaibo, the network is down in the mornings. She was forced to buy a Movistar SIM card to escape the isolation that affected her for several weeks.

In addition, Internet access via cellular data and local telephone services is limited. The president of the Venezuelan Observatory of Public Services ( Observatorio Venezolano de Servicios Públicos, Ovsp) claims that Zulia is one of the most affected states in terms of connectivity.

The root of the problem lies in the fact that half of all cellular phone towers “rely on backup power systems. They can last up to four hours, but many companies, due to financial constraints, have been limited in the investments they can make in infrastructure.”

Therefore, card payments are affected. This delays purchases at any store, given the shortage of cash.