"If They Were Western Kids, They Would Have Died"... 'Amazon Miracle' Children in Good Health

13-Year-Old Eldest Sister Likely Played Key Role in Survival
Expert: "Indigenous Children Learn Survival Skills"

The health condition of four Colombian children who went missing in the middle of the Amazon rainforest after a light aircraft crash and miraculously survived for 40 days has been confirmed to be good.

On the 10th (local time), Spanish news agency EFE reported the words of General Carlos Rincon Arango, a doctor at the Central Military Hospital in Bogota, Colombia, saying, "After comprehensive examinations, the children were found to be clinically stable and not in life-threatening condition."

However, General Arango added, "The children are receiving nutritional and psychological treatment, and they may need to be hospitalized for 2 to 3 weeks to fully recover."

Earlier, Colombian military authorities announced that they confirmed the survival of the four children who had been missing in the Amazon jungle and transported them to Bogota by helicopter and special medical aircraft.

The identities of the children are Leslie Mukutui (13), Soleini Mukutui (9), Tien Noriel Ronoke Mukutui (4), and Christine Neriman Lanoke Mukutui (1).

Colombian children miraculously rescued 40 days after going missing in a light aircraft accident
[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

According to authorities, on the 1st of last month, a small aircraft carrying seven people including the pilot, flying toward the small town of San Jose del Guaviare, crashed in Solano village in the southern Colombian Amazon jungle. Three adults were found dead in the accident, but the whereabouts and survival of the children on board were unknown.

Subsequently, the search team found a temporary shelter made of branches, scissors, and hair ties. Then, small footprints were discovered about 3 km from the crash site, confirming the possibility of their survival. In fact, the children were rescued about 3.2 km away from the crash site.

Pedro Sanchez, commander of the Joint Special Operations Command, described the search for the children in the jungle as "like trying to find a small flea moving unpredictably on a huge carpet."

It is analyzed that the children survived by using survival kits dropped from the air by rescue authorities during the search operation. These kits contained food and various supplies, which the children likely found and utilized.

However, it is still unclear exactly how the children survived in the jungle teeming with carnivorous predators such as jaguars and ocelots, as well as venomous snakes. Locally, it is believed that Leslie, the eldest sister among the four children, played a key role in caring for her younger siblings and their survival.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro visiting a hospital where children are admitted
[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

Iv?n Vel?squez G?mez, Minister of Defense, who visited the hospital where the children were admitted along with Colombian President Gustavo Petro, praised Leslie as "a hero who used her knowledge of the jungle to take care of her three younger brothers."

The children's maternal grandmother, Fatima Valencia, also said, "Leslie has a warrior-like personality and always cared for her siblings by giving them fruits she picked from the forest."

It is also presumed that the fact that the children belong to the indigenous Huitoto tribe living in the primitive forest areas of southeastern Colombia and northern Peru helped them survive in the harsh environment.

Carlos Perez, a tropical forest ecology professor at the University of East Anglia in the UK, explained, "Amazon indigenous children mature quickly and learn basic survival skills from an early age, such as finding food in the forest or avoiding animals."

He added, "Given the characteristics of the local environment, finding water would not have been difficult," and "If they had been Western children of the same age, they would have died."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.