Lone Survivor of Plane Crash Found Alive After 3 Days in the Amazon Jungle

A Bolivian cosmetics salesman has been found alive in the Amazon jungle, the sole survivor of the Aerocon flight that crashed Tuesday. BBC News reports that 35-year-old Minor Vidal was found Friday with head injuries a half mile away from the site of the plane crash near Trinidad in north-east Bolivia.

"'From several kilometres (miles) away, we saw a man on the river bank signalling to us. When we got closer, he knelt down and thanked God,'Capt Bustos said.

'He said he'd been trapped in the plane for more than 15 hours and that when he finally escaped he began to walk and survived by drinking his own urine and water from a lagoon,' Reuters quoted Capt Bustos as saying."

Officials had original declared all nine on board the flight to be dead. However, rescue teams began searching further away from the wreckage after only finding eight bodies at the crash site. Three days later a navy patrol discovered Vidal.

Sky News reports that Vidal told his rescuers that he had spent the first night sleeping in the wreckage surrounded by dead bodies. Vidal had suffered rib and facial injuries in the crash, and used his shirt as a flag to attract the attention of rescuers according to Sky News.

"Minor's sister, Rosario told reporters of her relief that her brother had managed to survive, describing it as 'a real miracle.'"

AFP reported that the plane was carrying seven passengers and two crew on the flight from Santa Cruz intended for Trinidad. According to Sky News, it is believed that the plane ran into diffiuclty when it flew into thick smoke caused by forests being burned to clear room for grazing.

Vidal told his rescuers that he wanted to talk to his daughters and tell them to have faith in God.