Children missing in Guavierre, Colombia: What we know about Operation Hope, 4 missing children found alive in Guavierre | Gustavo Pedro | Caqueta | the world

The four Solini brothers, Dean, Leslie and Christine, spent more than 40 days alone and lost in the jungle after the plane they were traveling with their mother crashed and she and two other adults died.

Los Colombian military forces Four children – aged 9, 4, 13 and 1, respectively – were found. With symptoms of dehydration and insect bitesAlthough they were fine, they were airlifted for medical attention.

WATCH: Miracle in Colombia: Four children missing in jungle plane crash 40 days ago found alive

The search operation, which ended successfully this Friday, began in mid-May and when army personnel arrived at the scene of the incident on the 1st of the same month, they found only the bodies of the 3 adults who were with them. The children disappeared.

Since then, around 120 uniformed officers and 70 indigenous people have been part of “Operativo Esperanza”.

They traveled about 1,250 kilometers through dense forest Between Colombian departments caqueta Y Quarrier Assisted by helicopters and rescue dogs.

“We have all the evidence to find them,” Captain Carlos Vargas, a member of the military liaison team, told BBC Mundo in May.

The weather conditions of the search were so bad that 14 tribal people reportedly had to abandon the mission due to health problems.

Grandma’s voice

Part of the strategy is to repeat the voice of Fatima, the children’s grandmother, over loudspeakers, saying in Spanish and her native language that they are looking for them. “They should be quiet” The message said.

The commander of Colombia’s Special Operations Joint Command, Pedro Sánchez, explained that the operation proceeded with three hypotheses: the minors were dead, they were under the control of the FARC rebels, and it ended up being true. : that they were alive, alone, and lost.

“They were alone. They achieved an example of total survival that will go down in history,” Colombian President Gustavo Pedro announced Friday.

Involves searching for children Cooperation between the government, indigenous communities and the national armyVice President Francia Marquez insisted after learning of the minor’s discovery.

“When we put knowledge and institutions to work diligently in the service of people, we can solve, save lives and collectively build trust,” he wrote on Twitter.

Clues

Diaper, bits of bitten fruit, pink baby bottle and “Improved shelter with sticks and branches”.

“We speculate that the children inside the plane are alive, we found some traces in a different and distant position from where the plane left (…) we found. A possible place where children can be sheltered We are continuing the search,” an army spokesperson said on May 18.

The key to the quest is the completed clue Footprints of one of the children next to the footprints of a dog. According to one of the mission commanders, they match Wilson, one of the three canines that was part of the search team and went missing a few days ago.

“Where we found the last tracks, we found the tracks of a canine. We think the puppy found them and went with them,” said Lucho Acosta, national coordinator of the local police.

After rescuing the children, it was confirmed that the dog was still missing.

accident

On the day of the accident, the family traveled to meet the father of Manuel Ranoc, a tribal leader who had fled Arausara as a result of threats from illegal armed groups.

The plane closed the Arraguara – San Jose del Guerrier route with seven people on board, including the pilot.

He had reported Mechanical problem Minutes before the Cessna 206 disappeared from radar, Columbia’s disaster recovery agency said.

The jungle area where the plane crashed has few roads and is difficult to access by water, so air travel is common.