A month later, the search for the child survivors of the plane crash continues in the Colombian jungle

The recent discovery of footprints of a small foot revived the hope of finding four children alive survived a minor plane crash a month ago in Colombia.

Footprints found on May 30 they were 3.2 kilometers northwest of where the plane went down in which three adults and Indigenous children aged 13, 9 and 4 and an 11-month-old infant were travelling. The new clues would indicate that the minors have changed course, that they are alone and continue to struggle to survive.

In the search operation, in a large piece of land in the middle of the virgin jungle of the Colombian Amazon, 119 men from the special forces and more than 70 indigenous people participate.

“We 100% expect to find them alive,” General Pedro Sánchez, commander of the Joint Special Operations Command (CCOES), told the Associated Press on Thursday.

tracks

“If they were dead it would be easier to find them because they would be static and the smells and animals would guide us where they are”, explained Sánchez, who warned that no deadline has been thought of to suspend the research work because the jungle, in addition to posing dangers, can also provide food and drink to minors.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro said he would find the children it is a priority.

“We found very complex elements to find in the jungle. For example, the lid of a baby bottle. If we found that, why can’t we find the rest? Because children are on the go. It’s not like finding a needle in a haystack, it’s like finding a tiny flea in a huge carpet that moves in unpredictable directions,” explained Sánchez.

Three days ago it was activated a relay pattern every 30 days for men of the Armed Forces who have the proper clothing and equipment to facilitate their movement through the jungle and which protects them from the many threats of the terrain.

“The commandos have to protect themselves not only from the rain, which is wet 16 hours a day, but also from the animals and diseases that exist in the jungle. Wild animals such as jaguars or ocelotspoisonous snakes, poisonous plants, but also the leishmaniasis mosquito, which produces a fever which, if not treated in time, can cause death,” explained General Sánchez.

In addition to the dangers of the jungle, the commandos themselves are at risk of getting lost. “They have to walk together and navigate with all georeferencing systems to have a safe route. If they move more than 20 meters away they can get lost“, said the officer.

The imprint

The commandos are certain that the last footprint they found It’s from a 13 year old girl. They know this because they compared the size of the footprint to the boot of one of the soldiers who participated in the operation. They thought the children were nearby, but couldn’t find them. “At 20 meters you can’t see anything. If there’s something else after that distance, you won’t see it, even if it happens 100 times,” General Sánchez explained.

Areas in the jungle have been cordoned off with 11 kilometers of duct tape, the kind normally used by crime squads, so that children will stick around in case they find them. Even in those spots they left whistles to make noise and make it easy to find.

Some soldiers walked distances equivalent to the distance between Lisbon and Paris, about 1,500 kilometresin an effort to find the children alive. For the moment it is excluded that they are in the hands of indigenous people or some clandestine armed group, since it is a land that perhaps no one has ever visited before.

The rains of the last few days have been quite a challenge, not only because they erase the tracks but also because dissipate the sound of the speakers who are constantly playing a recording with their grandmother’s voice at full volume calling them to try to stay still in one place.

Among the clues that the commandos have found since the search was activated are a bottle, some towels, used diapers, some scissors and footprints in places relatively close to the place where the accident took place. cannot be set if the children left those things intentionally to leave clues to those who seek them.

The accident occurred on the morning of May 1 after the pilot declared an emergency due to engine failure. Two weeks later, the remains of the crashed plane were found along with the bodies of the three adults traveling on it.