They included the sister of the first lady, Sofia Lopez Moreira Bó, her sister's husband, Luis Pettengill, and their three children and nanny, Lady Vanessa Luna Villalba.
Luna, a 23-year-old daughter of farmers, studied nursing and was now caring for the family's three children. Her brother, Richard Luna, prayed for a miracle as he watched news reports in Paraguay.
“She had many hopes of progressing and helping our parents,” he said. “We are emotionally devastated.”
President Mario Abdo announced he had canceled activities for Thursday and Friday to be with his wife. The first lady is planning to travel to Miami on Friday night, Gilmer Moreira, press director of Paraguay’s presidential palace, said.
As of Friday morning, family, friends and colleagues hadn't heard from Dr. Brad Cohen, a 51-year-old orthopedic surgeon. Colleagues at Cohen’s medical practice, Aventura Orthopaedics and Sports Medicine, held out hope.
“We have people looking out in the hospitals and anywhere he might be,” receptionist Joselyne Cheramy said. “We’re clueless.”
“His phone is not picking up,” Khafizov’s realtor, Tatiana Asailov, said through tears, adding Cohen has a “very attached” daughter who is around 12 years old.
Asailov knows the condo like the back of her hand. “To me, his master bedroom where he would sleep is located right at the end, and I still hope that that room is still there,” Asailov said. “I look at the broken building and I hope."
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