Beautiful Virgin Islands

Friday, Jan 24, 2025

Colombia plane crash: Children reportedly survive 16 days in jungle

Colombia plane crash: Children reportedly survive 16 days in jungle

Officials in Colombia say four children missing since their plane crashed in the jungle have been found alive and well more than two weeks later.
Their mother and the other adults were killed in the crash.

The government's child welfare agency, ICBF, said it had received information "from the field" that the children had been found in good health.

A pilot said he had also been told the children had been found by indigenous people deep in the rainforest.

Soldiers taking part in the search, however, have yet to see the children for themselves.

The Cessna 206 light aircraft they had been in was flying from Araracuara, deep in the Amazon jungle in southern Colombia, to San José del Guaviare, when it disappeared in the morning of 1 May.

Its pilot had earlier reported engine problems.

After a huge search effort involving more than 100 soldiers, the plane was finally located on Monday, two weeks after it had disappeared.

The bodies of the pilot, the co-pilot and 33-year-old Magdalena Mucutuy, the mother of the four children, were found at the crash site in Caquetá province.

But the children, who are aged 13, nine and four years, as well as an 11-month-old baby, were nowhere to be found.

The search teams have, however, found clues indicating that the children, who are from the Huitoto indigenous group, survived the crash.

Sniffer dogs came across a child's drinking bottle, a pair of scissors, a hair tie and some half-eaten fruit.

The search teams also found an improvised shelter made from sticks and branches.

"We think that the children who were aboard the plane are alive. We have found traces at a different location, away from the crash site, and a place where they may have sheltered," Colonel Juan José López said on Wednesday.

Fearing that the children were wandering ever deeper into the jungle, the military deployed helicopters which played a recorded message from their grandmother in the Huitoto language urging them to stay put.

The search was hampered by heavy rains, but on Wednesday Colombia's Institute for Child Welfare told Colombia's president it had received reports "from the field" that the children had been found by locals.

President Petro tweeted the news, saying the had been located "after an arduous search".

However, confusion arose when Colombia's armed forces said they themselves had not yet been able to make contact with the children "due to the difficult meteorological conditions and the difficult terrain" - and could not confirm the news of their rescue.

Meanwhile, Avianline, a local plane operator which owned the crashed plane, released a statement saying that it too had received reports that the children had been found.

One of its pilots landing on a dirt strip in Cachiporro, a community near the crash site, was told that locals there had been contacted by radio from a remote location called Dumar and been told that the children had been found. They would be taken by boat to Cachiporro, he said.

The company added that it had no way of confirming if the information was correct, but it did point out that the arrival of the children by boat may have been delayed by heavy rains, which have made the river too dangerous to navigate.

Indigenous radio stations have also reported that the children were found by a local, and were being transported by river to Cachiporro.

President Petro has not released any news on the children since the tweet in which he announced that they had been located.

The children's father had earlier said that he was not giving up hope. He told Caracol Radio that his sister had once been lost in the forest for a month and managed to return.

It is thought that the Huitoto people's knowledge of fruits and jungle survival skills will have given the young children a better chance of surviving the ordeal.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Germany’s Democracy Under Strain: Political Labeling Sparks Free Speech Concerns
The Trump Era 2: A Time of Dramatic and Profound Change
BlackRock CEO Larry Fink Suggests Bitcoin Could Reach $700,000 with Increased Institutional Investment
Leaked Documents Reveal Google's Collaboration with Israeli Defense Forces During Gaza Conflict
Trump to Announce $500 Billion AI Infrastructure Investment
Dear President Donald Trump, I want to assure you that this fraud does NOT reflect the opinions of the majority of decent British citizens.
Olaf Scholz vs. Elon Musk: A Battle Over Common Sense, Which Scholz Appears to Be Missing
EU’s Overregulation Drives Innovation Collapse and Brain Drain
Five Billionaires on Track to Break One Trillion Dollar Wealth Barrier
TikTok Restored in the U.S. Following Trump inauguration
Bill Ackman Praises Social Media Platform X as 'The New Media'
Argentina Achieves Record Trade Surplus in 2024 Under President Milei
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni Proposes Rome as European Union Capital
France Urges EU to Act on Musk's Political Influence as Tensions Rise
Former Special Forces Blast Defense Ministry for Revealing Sensitive Details
Celebrity Responses to California Wildfires: Charity, Criticism, and Controversy
The Wildfires of Los Angeles: A Devastating Impact on Celebrities and California's Leadership
Tragic Loss: Teenager's Death Sparks Community Reflection in Bedford and London
UK Government Proposes Cap on Resale Ticket Prices to Combat Touts
Greenland's Future Caught in Diplomatic Crossfire Between Trump and Europe
EU Prepared to Lead Support for Ukraine Amid US Uncertainty, Says Estonian Prime Minister
Brompton E-Bike Component Diverted to UK Military Drone Production, Causes Delays
Romanian Gang Convicted of Human Trafficking and Exploitation in Dundee
Persistent Cold Snap Grips the UK: Severe Frost and Snow Disrupt Daily Life
Germany Faces Alarming Rise in Homelessness, New Report Shows
China’s Appetite for Salmon: A Game Changer in Global Seafood Markets
Russian Bots Allegedly Amplified NATO Critic Prior to Croatian Election, Researchers Reveal
Armenia Considers EU Membership Referendum Amid Strained Ties with Russia
French Finance Minister Explores Pension Reform Compromise to Secure Budget Agreement
Armenia Considers EU Referendum Amid Growing Rift with Russia
New Wildfire Ignites in Los Angeles as Region Battles Devastating Blazes
The Espionage Unraveled: A Russian Spy Network's Intricacies in the UK
U.S. Supreme Court Rejects Trump's Bid to Delay Sentencing in Hush Money Case
UK Financial Markets Remain Calm Amid Rising Government Borrowing Costs
Stellantis Achieves UK Electric Vehicle Sales Mandate Amid Factory Closure
TikTok Faces Potential Ban in the United States Amid Security Concerns
Pound Plummets to 14-Month Low Amid Concerns Over UK Borrowing Costs
Tensions Rise Over Planned Pro-Palestinian March in London
Bomb Scare in Central London: Abandoned Car Sparks Panic Near Regent Street
Police Seek Suspect in Antisemitic Incident at Liverpool Street Station
Regulatory Reprimand for London Charity Over Fundraising for Israeli Soldier
The Duchess of Sussex Mourns Devastating Loss of Beloved Rescue Dog
From Chairman to Controversial Politician: Rupert Lowe's Journeys in Business and Politics
Metropolitan Police Halts Pro-Palestine March Near BBC Due to Proximity to Synagogue
Inside Warwick Hospital: A Glimpse into the NHS's Battle Against Winter Pressures
Chappell Roan: A Synth-Pop Sensation Emerges as BBC Sound Of 2025 Winner
Search Intensifies for Missing Aberdeen Sisters Eliza and Henrietta Huszti
Pioneering Drug Consumption Room Opens in Glasgow
Ryanair Initiates Legal Action Against Disruptive Passenger in Landmark Case
Former Brexit Negotiator Oliver Robbins Appointed Top Civil Servant at UK Foreign Office
×