Colombia: what hope of finding four children missing for a month in the jungle?

2023-05-30T04:21:02.789Z

Highlights: Children aged 1, 4, 9 and 13 are still nowhere to be found. The wreckage of the small plane was found on May 15, along with the bodies of the three adults, the pilot, the children's mother and another passenger who perished in the crash. New footprints were reportedly found on Sunday 28. The forest is huge, dark, dangerous. The task is excessive, the general recalled Monday. It is unlikely that they could have survived alone for a month. Compatriots want to believe the spirit of the forest protects them.

The chances of finding in the Colombian jungle the four children who, on May 1, survived a plane crash, seem slim. The carcass of the small plane – a Cessna – has been found...

Colombia: what hope of finding four children missing for a month in the jungle?

The chances of finding in the Colombian jungle the four children who, on May 1, survived a plane crash, seem slim. The wreckage of the small plane – a Cessna – was found on May 15, along with the bodies of the three adults, the pilot, the children's mother and another passenger who perished in the crash. Children aged 1, 4, 9 and 13 are still nowhere to be found.

Photo published by the press office of the Colombian Armed Forces: The wreckage of a Cessna C206, Thursday, May 18, 2023, which crashed in the jungle of Solano, in the state of Caqueta, Colombia. AP

Text by: RFI Follow

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With our correspondent in Bogota, Marie-Eve Detoeuf

On Monday, May 29, General Pedro Sanchez revived hope. At the microphone of W radio, the commander of the special forces said that the children were most likely alive. New footprints were reportedly found on Sunday 28. The search must continue, the soldier said. They mobilized nearly 200 men and significant resources. Dozens of Indians who know the jungle lend a hand to the military on the ground.

Protected by the spirit of the forest?

Some 10,000 leaflets were thrown by helicopter warning children not to move. Projectors are turned on at night to help them find their bearings. In vain. The forest is huge, dark, dangerous. And bad weather doesn't help. The task is excessive, the general recalled Monday.

So why remain hopeful? Children who grew up in an Indian community knew the jungle, but it is unlikely that they could have survived alone for a month. Compatriots want to believe that the spirit of the forest protects them.

Colombia: what hope of finding four children missing for a month in the jungle?

Colombia: what hope of finding four children missing for a month in the jungle?

Protected by the spirit of the forest?

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