“Joy for the whole country! Four children who went missing 40 days ago in the Colombian jungle have been found alive,” Mr. Petro tweeted, accompanying the post with a photo of the location where the military, firefighters, civil aviation workers and indigenous people found them. participates in the operation to rescue four brothers with the help of specially trained dogs and air means.

¡Una alegría para todo el país! Aparecieron con vida los 4 niños que estaban perdidos hase 40 días en la selva colombiana. pic.twitter.com/cvADdLbCpm

— Gustavo Petro (@petrogustavo) June 9, 2023

“Yes, they found the children, I need a plane or a helicopter to find them urgently,” the children’s grandfather, Fidencio Valencia, told AFP.

Members of the local Huitoto tribe, accustomed to life in the jungle, the four children have been wandering through the dense vegetation since the day the Cessna 206 crashed, in which they were traveling with their mother, pilot and relative. The three adult passengers on the plane were found dead by the military at the crash site.

The search and rescue operation, dubbed Hope, was hampered by difficult terrain, dense vegetation and adverse weather conditions, army officers explained a few days ago.

The Cessna, with seven people on board, was en route from Araquara, Amazonas, to San José del Guaviare, Guaviare, when it sounded a distress call early on May 1 due to a mechanical problem and then disappeared from radar.

The Colombian military tweeted additional photos from the site where the brothers were found.

President Petros initially announced via Twitter that the children had been found on May 17, but later deleted the post, explaining that the information was unconfirmed and apologizing.

“They were together, they are weak, they will be examined by doctors. They found them, and this makes me very happy,” President Petros said, stressing that they managed to find them on their own in the jungle.

During a painstaking search, rescuers found half-eaten fruit, makeshift hiding places and various items, including a bottle for a younger child.

Source: AFP, Reuters, APE-MPE.