Venezuelan footballer's wife dies shielding daughter during catastrophic quakes

A well-known football player in Venezuela lost his wife while she was shielding the couple's baby daughter from the deadly tremors that jolted the South American country earlier this week.

Hector Bello, who plays for the Martimo de La Guair club, announced on Instagram that his spouse, Andrea Bello, was killed on Wednesday, June 24, while protecting their 1-year-old daughter, Alana, during the devastating twin earthquakes.

"You'll always be our favorite hero, Mommy. I'm going to make sure our baby remembers how wonderful you were, how much you loved her," the footballer wrote – according to US media outlet People – as he shared a photo in memory of his wife on Instagram on Friday, June 26.

Expressing his admiration for Andrea, he further said, "I'll tell her the story of how you saved her, how you gave your own life for our daughter, how you were a brave woman who, even with your last breaths, never abandoned her."

According to Venezuelan football press and publicity organisation Cuman de Campeones, the woman was "found dead in the rubble" following the collapse of the building where the couple lived. Baby Alana fortunately survived the tragedy, per the organisation.

"The entire state of Sucre and the entire football community embrace you and stand with you in respect and solidarity, hoping you find peace in this time of sorrow," it said, in an Instagram post cited by People.

Hector remembered Andrea as a "hero" for saving the infant.

"My daughter... I need you to be strong. Just wait a little longer. I need you to be the one to heal my heart, which is in pieces," he said in an Instagram post dedicated to his daughter.

The footballer wrote further, "You won't see your daddy strong or smiling like always, but I promise to heal and make you the happiest girl in the world."

"Now it's just you and me and your mommy watching over us from heaven. I know Andrea will give me strength," Hector added.

"Through all this suffering, I know that if she had a minute to say something to me, she would tell me to protect you with my life like she did," the post read further.

The death toll from the major tragedy in Venezuela has climbed to at least 1,430. At least 68,900 people have been reported missing in the wake of the back-to-back earthquakes by their families, the government said.

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