Mother dies in Amazon crash, kids survive 40 days before rescue

Four siblings were rescued from the Amazon jungle after surviving 40 days following a plane crash that killed their mother and two pilots. The children’s father, Manuel Ranoque, revealed that their mother, Magdalena Mucutuy, was alive for four days after the crash and urged them to leave and seek help. The siblings, aged 13, nine, five, and one, were airlifted from the jungle and taken to a military hospital in Bogota.

Manuel Ranoque told reporters outside the hospital, “Before she died, their mum told them something like, ‘You guys get out of here. You guys are going to see the kind of man your dad is, and he’s going to show you the same kind of great love that I have shown you.” The children’s time in the jungle and their rescue have been attracting attention, including the first words they spoke when found.

Rescue worker Nicolas Ordonez Gomes recounted the moment they discovered the children, saying, “The eldest daughter, Lesly, with the little one in her arms, ran towards me. Lesly said: ‘I’m hungry.'” He also mentioned that one of the boys told him, “My mum is dead.” The rescue team responded with positive words, reassuring the children that they were friends and sent by their family. The boy replied, “I want some bread and sausage.”

Footage of the children’s rescue showed the siblings appearing emaciated after spending weeks fending for themselves in the wilderness. They had been travelling with their mother on a Cessna 206 aircraft from Araracuara to San José del Guaviare on May 1 when the plane issued a mayday alert due to engine failure. The army found the bodies of the mother and pilots at the crash site, but the children had wandered into the rainforest to find help.

A massive rescue operation involving soldiers and local people focused on finding the missing children. Rescuers located them after spotting signs in the jungle, such as footprints and fruit that had been bitten. Members of the children’s community hoped that their knowledge of fruits and jungle survival skills would increase their chances of staying alive.

Astrid Cáceres, head of the Colombian Institute of Family Welfare, explained that the timing of their ordeal was fortunate as “the jungle was in harvest” and they could eat fruit that was in bloom.