AP describes a small plane carrying seven people that crashed in a densely forested area of Colombia’s Amazon rainforest on May 1. The aftermath killed three adults, who were identified as the children’s mother, the pilot and a leader of the indigenous Huitoto tribe.
When rescuers arrived at the scene of the plane crash, they only found the bodies of the three unfortunate victims, but no trace of the four children who were with them.
The missing victims included four sisters: Lesly (13 years old), Soleiny (9 years old), Tien Noriel (4 years old) and baby Cristin (who was 11 months old at the time and celebrated her first birthday in the forest).
Believing that four children were still alive after the crash, Colombian authorities launched a search operation called "Hope". The operation involved 160 military personnel and 70 locals with in-depth knowledge of the area where the plane crashed.
The scene of the plane crash on May 1 that killed three adults in Colombia. Photo: Daily Mail.
Colombian rescuers struggled through the rainforest to search for four missing children. Photo: EPA
During the helicopter search, rescuers played a recording of the victims' grandmother, urging the children to stay calm and wait for adults to come rescue them.
For weeks, despite no sign of the children, they found startling clues such as footprints, a used diaper, a baby bottle, and half-eaten fruit, giving rescue teams increasing confidence that the children were still alive.
This also led to a time when Colombian President Gustavo Petro himself directly announced that the children had been found after 17 days, but then had to retract the information.
Finally, the "Hope" campaign ended in joy for the whole country of Colombia and the world community, because on June 9, they found 4 children still alive in an area about 5 km from the scene.
Rescuers and four children were found after 40 days missing. Photo: Daily Mail
When found, the children showed signs of dehydration and malnutrition. They also had insect bites on their bodies, but they were not life-threatening.
How four children could survive 40 days in a dense forest filled with snakes and ferocious animals is a question that many people are interested in.
The victims' uncle, Fidencio Valencia, said his nephews survived by eating cassava flour.
"When the plane crashed, they found a box of fariña in the wreckage and survived. Fariña is a type of cassava flour that people in the Amazon region often eat," said Mr. Fidencio Valencia.
Another factor that helped the four children survive was the “protection of the Amazon forest”. “The children could have also survived by eating wild fruits because the forest is in season right now,” said Astrid Cáceres, head of the Colombian Institute for Family Welfare.
Excellent survival skills help 4 children survive in dangerous situations. "The eldest sister Lesly learned survival skills and taking care of her younger siblings from her family when her parents were often away from home at work" - the family of the 4 children said.
President Petro also emphasized: "Indigenous knowledge from family and community, understanding of how to survive in the forest saved their lives. All four of them survived in the forest for 40 days. This is an example of survival that will go down in history."
"The forest saved the children," the Colombian president added. "They are children of the forest and now they are also children of the entire Colombian people."
Video released by the Colombian air force on June 9 shows four children being lifted onto a helicopter by rope, as the terrain made it impossible for the helicopter to land.
Photos on Twitter showed the rescue team posing with children wrapped in blankets to keep warm, one of the soldiers handing a bottle of milk to the youngest.
13-year-old girl took care of her younger brothers for 40 days in the Amazon jungle. Photo: EPA
The rescue operation for the four children ended happily, but a sheepdog named Wilson is still missing. This is the dog that the rescue team deployed to search for the four children.
"The children had spent time playing with Wilson, but then he went missing," said General Pedro Sanchez, who is in charge of the rescue efforts.
It is known that the families of the victims, the family of President Gustavo Petro, many officials and many Colombian people on June 10 (local time) visited the hospital to visit the four children who miraculously survived.
The victims are currently being treated at a military hospital in the capital Bogota. Photo: EPA
President Gustavo Petro with a nurse caring for one of the four children who survived the plane crash in the Amazon. Photo: AP
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