Four children survived a plane crash and then more than two weeks in the Amazon rainforest in Colombia. Her mother and two other adults perished in the crash.
More than two weeks after a plane crash in Colombia, four children have been found alive in the dense Colombian Amazon rainforest. “Joy for the country,” wrote Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro on Twitter. The children of the indigenous Huitoto people were found “after a tedious search by our armed forces”.
Improvised shelter made of sticks and twigs
More than a hundred soldiers with sniffer dogs and indigenous people from the area had searched for the minors. The children are eleven months and four, nine and 13 years old. Her mother and two other adults died in the plane crash. Soldiers found their bodies on Monday and Tuesday.
The Cessna disappeared from radar on May 1 while flying over the Amazon rainforest. At the time, she was near San José del Guaviare, one of the largest cities in the Colombian Amazon. The army posted photos of the wreck on Twitter. They show the wreck in the middle of the jungle, where it apparently fell vertically, snout first, to the ground.
The rescue workers assume that the children have been moving through the jungle in the southern department of Caqueta since the accident. According to the army, the search was intensified again on Wednesday morning after the helpers discovered “an improvised shelter made of sticks and twigs”. That indicated at least one survivor. Scissors and a hair band were seen on the jungle floor in photos released by the armed forces. Rescue teams had found bitten fruit from the jungle at the crash site, which is why they hoped for survivors.
Wild animals and rainfall had made the search difficult
Huge trees that can grow up to 40 meters high, wild animals and heavy rains had made the search called “Operation Hope” difficult. Three helicopters were in action. The Huitoto indigenous people are known for living in harmony with the jungle and for their skills in hunting, fishing and wild fruit gathering. This may have helped the children survive more than two weeks alone.
The cause of the plane crash is still unclear. The pilot had reported engine problems before his plane disappeared from radar, according to the Colombian Civil Protection Agency. Roads are few in the region and access by river is also difficult, making airplanes an important mode of transport.