Clues suggest children survived plane crash in Colombian jungle as rescuers race to find them

() — Colombia’s armed forces have spent more than two weeks searching for survivors of a plane crash in the Amazon jungle, even broadcasting a recorded message from the grandmother of four children on board, telling them to stay put.

This Wednesday there seemed to be a breakthrough, when the president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, tweeted that the children, 13, 9, 4 years old and one more than 11 months old, were found alive. But then he deleted the tweet and said on Thursday that the information given to him by the Family Welfare Institute (ICBF), which is in charge of child protection, had not been confirmed.

What would be an extraordinary story of survival now has Colombians confused, as government officials battle poor communications and still have no direct contact with the children.

The director of the Colombian Institute for Family Welfare (ICBF), Astrid Cáceres, said her team received second-hand confirmation that search teams rescued and identified the children, who have been missing since a small plane crash in southern Colombia. Colombia on May 1.

She added that she was “very confident” that the four children were found alive more than two weeks after their plane crashed in the Amazon jungle, but was awaiting further evidence.

According to the ICBF, the Colombian Armed Forces followed a trail of small objects such as hair ties, plastic wrap, and baby bottles in their search for the missing group.

Asked why the police and army were continuing search efforts despite reports that the children had been rescued, Cáceres said: “It’s hard to communicate in the jungle and it was raining yesterday too.”

“The information I have is that they are fine, we also understand that they had very difficult days, but these are children who moved through the area and they seemed to be fine,” he added.

“We are still missing that last link that confirms all our hopes. Until we have the photo of the children we will not stop. We are not underestimating the information we receive, but we want to confirm [directamente] ourselves”.

The Colombian Civil Aeronautical Authority said in a previous statement that they found a “refuge built improvised with sticks and leaves.”

a long search

Rescue teams have been searching for the wreckage of the Cessna plane since it crashed on May 1 in the southern department of Guaviare, in the Amazon area.

This Thursday, the general director of the Colombian Civil Aeronautics, Jairo Pineda, said that three bodies were recovered and taken to San José del Guaviare.

“What we have at this moment is the arrival of three confirmed adult corpses that we are monitoring after carrying out a difficult evacuation; they had to be taken up in helicopters,” he told reporters in San José del Guaviare.

According to Pineda, two of the deceased are from an indigenous community, and the third body belongs to a pilot.

Authorities said they followed a trail of small items including hair ties, plastic wrap and baby bottles in their search for the children. (Credit: Colombian Civil Aviation Authority)

The massive search operation of the Colombian Armed Forces has been supported by canine units, local indigenous communities, planes and helicopters, which flew over the region transmitting a message recorded by the children’s grandmother.

The search intensified on Thursday night, according to the Civil Aviation Authority, after “new findings that could give clues to the whereabouts (of the children).”

“In the last hours, thanks to the orientation of the canine Ulises, the Special Forces located what would be an improvised shelter with sticks and branches. There the officers found some scissors and some ‘little monkeys’ that women usually use to hold their hair back.”

“Hopes of finding the four children alive remain intact,” he said.

No photos or videos showing the children have surfaced yet.

In his tweet on Thursday, President Petro apologized for saying the children had been found before the confirmation was complete.

“I’m sorry about what happened. The Military Forces and the indigenous communities will continue their tireless search to give the country the news it expects. Right now, there is no other priority than to continue the search until you find them. Children’s lives are the most important thing.”

— ‘s Claudia Rebaza and Lynn Franco contributed to this report.