Colombian troops and indigenous people are scouring swathes of the Amazon rainforest in an effort to find four children who went missing 20 days after a plane crash.
On May 1st, a light aircraft carrying seven people crashed en route 350 km from Araracuara to San Jose del Guaviare, a city in the Amazon rainforest region of Colombia. Minutes after takeoff, the pilot of the Avianline Charter Cessna 206 reported engine trouble.
The plane then disappeared from radar screens. The passengers included a Huitoto Indigenous community leader and a woman named Magdalena Mucutui Valencia along with her four children, also from the community.
On May 15th and 16th, soldiers found the bodies of the pilot and two adults in the Caqueta area. The aircraft wreckage was stuck vertically amidst dense vegetation, with the nose section destroyed.
Colombian troops prepare to enter the Amazon rainforest to search for four missing children in Caqueta, May 19. Photo: AFP
The sniffer dog then located a baby bottle near the scene. Rescue workers also found shoes, clothing, and a half-eaten piece of fruit.
The children, including Lesly, 13; Soleiny, 9; Tien Noriel, 4; and Cristin, 11 months old, are believed to have survived and are now wandering in the woods.
Colombian authorities launched Operation Hope, deploying more than 100 soldiers, three helicopters, and sniffer dogs for a wide-area search. Rescue efforts faced numerous challenges due to the area's difficult accessibility and harsh conditions such as heavy rain and wildlife.
One of the three rescue helicopters, equipped with a loudspeaker, broadcast messages recorded by the children's grandmother in their native language, instructing them to "stop moving in the forest and wait for rescue." On May 17, soldiers found a makeshift shelter constructed from branches. Search dogs also found scissors and hair ties.
The scene of the plane crash in the Amazon rainforest, Caqueta province, Colombia, on May 19. Photo: AFP
Fidencia Valencia, the grandfather of the four children, said they were used to the jungle and may have been hiding out of fear. "The eldest, Lesly, is very intelligent, very active and resourceful. Soleiny and Tien Noriel are also very good at navigating the jungle. They love each other very much," Valencia said.
"We are indigenous people, so we have many advantages. We know the uses of different plants, fruits, and leaves. That's essential knowledge," he added.
But Valencia questioned why the children were throwing away things that "could be useful for survival." "Besides cutting, scissors are also weapons," he said.
Information about the search was misleading on May 17, when the Colombian president said officials had found four children. He retracted the statement the following day, saying the military and indigenous communities would continue the search relentlessly to deliver the information the nation awaited.
On May 19, the Colombian army deployed an additional 50 soldiers to reinforce the search efforts. Experienced indigenous people familiar with traversing the Amazon rainforest also joined the operation. The latest discovery was a footprint in the mud, believed to belong to one of the children.
Another threat is the movement of armed drug trafficking groups through the forest. "There are no villages in this area, not even the locals know the area well," Valencia said.
He believes his four grandchildren are still alive and stressed that the search team must not give up. "The children have been in the forest for a long time, but with everyone's support and prayers, we will be able to find them," he said.
Duc Trung (According to AFP, Page 12 )
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