A FRIGHTENED mother has told of her ‘agonised wait’ to find out if her daughter will be able to fly home from crisis-torn Venezuela.

Jane Rojas from Accrington flew out to the South American country in May to visit the family of her late father Nardo in the oil town of Anaco.

Since then the security situation in Venezuela, gripped by a political crisis under President Nicolas Maduro, has worsened with some airlines cancelling flights to and from the capital Caracas.

Now her mother Judith Tregartha, who also lives in Accrington, fears her 33-year-old daughter may be trapped in a country gripped by increasing violence and political uncertainty.

The UK Foreign Office’s latest advice is against all but essential travel to the country and for Britons there to keep their departure options under review warning: “If the political situation worsens, the British Embassy may be limited in the assistance that it can provide.”

Mrs Tregartha, 59, is so worried she had contacted Hyndburn MP Graham Jones, who has been in touch with the Foreign Office over the case.

Mrs Tregartha lived with her husband in his home town of Anaco before returning home in 2000.

Jane and her brothers Richard, 28, and Stuart, 22, were born in the country.

After Nardo died in 2006, the family home was occupied by squatters encouraged by President Maduro’s predecessor and mentor Hugo Chavez.

Mrs Tregartha said: “My daughter flew out in May to see her father’s family and knew there were risks but was with trusted people.

“Since then the security situation has deteriorated and I am terrified she won’t be able to make it home safely.

“It is agony.

“Jane is due to fly back on September 3 from Caracas arriving in the UK the following day.

“It is a five hour drive to the airport and several airlines have stopped flying to the country.

“She is booked on Iberia which are still operating from Caracas airport but I am worried she might not be able to fly.

“There is a lot of violence in the country and I am concerned about Jane making it safely to Caracas, all flights being stopped or her being halted at the airport by the authorities because of her British passport.

“I fully understand her wanting to go and see her father’s family but’s it is going to be an agonising wait to find out if she will get home safely.

“Venezuela was a lovely country when we lived there but since then things have gone from bad to worse and there is a lot of crime, violence and power cuts there now.

“I can’t sleep properly and won’t until she is back home in Accrington.”

Embattled President Maduro, who is under pressure over his handling of an economic and political crisis that has sparked deadly protests, has resisted opposition calls for fresh elections but says he will ask Venezuelans to vote a second time on a new constitution to opposition claims will give him dictatorial powers.

The Foreign Office advice adds: “Britons should remain vigilant and informed. Avoid protests and demonstrations, which can turn violent with little warning. There’s a high threat from violent crime and kidnapping throughout Venezuela.”

Mr Jones said: “I am concerned about the deteriorating situation in Venezuela.”