4 children survived plane crash, found alive in Colombian Amazon after 40 days

The children had been wandering alone in the jungle since May 1, when a small plane in which they were travelling crashed in Amazon rainforest.

Colombian President Gustavo Pedro on Saturday said four children who survived a plane crash last month have been found alive in the country's Amazon rainforest after five weeks of an intense search operation.

Soldiers and Indigenous men pose for a photo with the four Indigenous brothers who were missing after a deadly plane crash, in the Solano jungle, Caqueta state, Colombia, Friday, June 9, 2023. (via AP)

“A joy for the whole country! The 4 children who were lost 40 days ago in the Colombian jungle appeared alive,” Pedro said in a tweet while posting a photograph of several military and Indigenous people who participated in the operation to locate and rescue the siblings.

The siblings, who appear gaunt in the photo, were alone when searchers found them and are now receiving medical attention, Petro told reporters.

The president said the youngsters are an “example of survival” and predicted their saga “will remain in history.

Lesly Jacobombaire Mucutuy, 13, Soleiny Jacobombaire Mucutuy, 9, Tien Ranoque Mucutuy, 4, and infant Cristin Ranoque Mucutuy were the only survivors of the deadly plane crash.

Soldiers and Indigenous men tend to the four Indigenous brothers who were missing after a deadly plane crash, in the Solano jungle, Caqueta state, Colombia, Friday, June 9, 2023. (AP)

The crash occurred in the early hours of May 1, when the Cessna single-engine propeller plane with six passengers and a pilot declared an emergency due to an engine failure.

The children's mother, Magdalena Mucutuy Valencia, the pilot and an indigenous leader died in the crash. The crashed plane was found in a thick patch of the Colombian rainforest on May 16, two weeks after the crash, and the bodies were recovered from the area. But the children were nowhere to be found.

The children’s disappearance into the deep rainforest triggered a massive military-led search operation.

On Friday, the military tweeted pictures showing a group of soldiers and volunteers posing with the children, who were wrapped in thermal blankets. One of the soldiers held a bottle to the smallest child's lips.

“The union of our efforts made this possible” Colombia's military command wrote on its Twitter account.

(With inputs from agencies)