Children lost in Amazon jungle due to deadly plane crash have been found after 40 days

Four children — aged 13, 9, 4, and 11 months old — miraculously endured 40 days in the Amazon jungle after a plane crash that killed others. They recently shared their gripping story, detailing their fight for survival.  

The Cessna single-engine propeller plane was carrying 4 children and 3 adults when the engine failed. The aircraft disappeared from radar soon after the pilot declared an emergency, triggering immediate search and rescue efforts.  

While the children revealed limited information, their accounts offer chilling insight into their extraordinary ordeal. Among the most heart-wrenching revelations was the tragic loss of their mother, who initially survived the crash but succumbed to her injuries 4 days later. Authorities and family members credit the children’s survival to resourcefulness, as they ate cassava flour from the plane’s cargo, per the AP.  Once the flour ran out, the kids later relied on familiar seeds and fruits found in the jungle. In an effort to provide sustenance for the children, soldiers aboard helicopters air-dropped boxes of food into the jungle, with the hope that it would assist in their survival.  

A member of the search group told news outlets, including the Associated Press, that the children had 2 small bags with them when they were found. The bags contained clothes, a towel, a flashlight, 2 cellphones, a music box, and a soda bottle – which he said they used to collect water in the jungle. One of the children had reportedly told their uncle that they hid in tree trunks to protect themselves from snakes, wild animals, and insects.

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Dozens of Indigenous volunteers joined 150 Colombian soldiers in the search and rescue efforts. The father of 2 of the children emphasized that the successful rescue operation highlighted the expertise of the Indigenous population in navigating the jungle. He told the AP, "We demonstrated to the world our ability to locate the plane... we found the children."