Sole survivor of plane crash comes home after a two-mile fall, broken bones, and days in the perilous jungle
A young woman was the sole survivor of a plane crash despite suffering a two-mile fall and ending up in a dangers-infused jungle.
In 1971, on Christmas Eve, lightning struck the plane Juliane Koepcke and her mother were traveling with over the Peruvian rainforest. The engines exploded and the aircraft began to fall through the air towards the jungle below. Juliane was the only survivor.
As per Unilad, her story was detailed in a video by TikToker Scout.
In the clip, he claims that the sole survivor woke up 20 hours after the crash with injuries all over her body, including deep cuts on her legs, a fractured chin, and a broken collarbone. She then tried to find other survivors, but, sadly, her efforts were to no avail.
When Juliane realized all other passengers, including her mother, died in the crash, she began searching for a way out of the rainforest.
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She then found a river and decided to follow the stream, believing people would be using it as a water source. But instead of walking alongside the river, she waded through it.
As Juliane’s parents were scientists, she has been raised at a research station in the Peruvian rainforest. Hence, she was familiar with the dangers of the surrounding environment and knew that “the local crocodiles didn’t really like to mess with people” unlike “the poisonous snakes along the riverbanks.”
It took her over a week until she found a boat and a small cabin with a can of gasoline. She used the fuel to flush the maggots out of her wounds to avoid amputation.
Fortunately, the following day three men found her in the cabin and took her to a local hospital.
Credits: TikTok
In 2012, Juliane shared her overwhelming experience with BBC News. She said:
“The first thought I had was: ‘I survived an air crash.’
…The day after my rescue, I saw my father. He could barely talk and in the first moment we just held each other.
For the next few days, he frantically searched for news of my mother. On 12 January they found her body. Later I found out that she also survived the crash but was badly injured and she couldn’t move. She died several days later. I dread to think what her last days were like.”
Following the tragic incident, Juliane became a scientist, just like her parents. In her book “When I Fell From the Sky,” she explains in detail what happened after the lightning struck her plane and how she survived the perils of the jungle.
