Five people lived through an Amazon swamp crash after their small plane made an emergency landing. Local fishermen found them sitting on top of the aircraft surrounded by alligators. The group stayed there for 36 hours before rescue teams arrived with a helicopter.
Pilot Andres Velarde said engine problems forced him down near the Itanomas River during a flight from Baures to Trinidad. The survivors stayed on the plane roof because alligators came as close as three meters away. Fuel leaking from the aircraft may have kept the dangerous animals at a distance.
The rescued group included three women, one child, and the 29-year-old pilot. They survived mostly on cassava flour that a passenger happened to bring along. They avoided drinking the swamp water and stayed put because of danger from alligators and at least one anaconda they spotted nearby.
Health officials expressed happiness about the successful rescue operation that brought together multiple agencies. The survivors reached safety in excellent health despite their frightening experience in the remote Bolivian wilderness.
Pilot Andres Velarde said engine problems forced him down near the Itanomas River during a flight from Baures to Trinidad. The survivors stayed on the plane roof because alligators came as close as three meters away. Fuel leaking from the aircraft may have kept the dangerous animals at a distance.
The rescued group included three women, one child, and the 29-year-old pilot. They survived mostly on cassava flour that a passenger happened to bring along. They avoided drinking the swamp water and stayed put because of danger from alligators and at least one anaconda they spotted nearby.
Health officials expressed happiness about the successful rescue operation that brought together multiple agencies. The survivors reached safety in excellent health despite their frightening experience in the remote Bolivian wilderness.
