dresses to producing body bags. Designer Efrain Mogollon, 44, could not stand idle. Within a week, he mobilized his 22-person team in Maracay to address the critical shortage of body bags. "We needed to understand what we could do based on what we know how to do... And in this case, it was sewing," he told AFP.

By Monday, the workshop had produced 1,000 bags made of 500-micron high-density polyethylene, each three meters long and 90 centimeters wide. Half went to forensic services in Caracas; the other half to rescuers and families. Each roll bears a prayer card with the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Seamstress Grismary Villegas, 21, who has been sewing since age eight, said: "The truth hit hard when they told us what we were going to do. But at the same time we feel that we're doing something good." She voiced hope no more bags would be needed. With hospitals and morgues overwhelmed, the government has created makeshift body storage at La Guaira port and expanded a cemetery for unidentified victims. High-rises along the coast have been reduced to rubble, and thousands remain homeless in makeshift shelters. Dr. Andrea Vizcaino called the initiative a "necessary evil." Volunteer Carlos Solorzano, 44, agreed: "It's useful for being able to help the family." Mogollon has now also begun producing tarpaulins to protect displaced families from cold and rain. The UN is set to deliver 10,000 additional body bags. (Bssnews)