ALONE IN THE JUNGLE – THE STORY OF JULIAN KOEPCKE

ALONE IN THE JUNGLE

The Julian Koepcke story

by Kyt Lyn Walken

It is December 24, 1971 when the then seventeen year old Julian Koepcke, born in Lima to German parents, both zoologists, embarks with her mother on the LANSA Lockheed L-188 Electra OB-R-941 flight bound for Pucallpa, Peru. They are joining their father who is currently there, but who advises against taking that company, Líneas Aéreas Nacionales SA, which in just four years had already suffered two serious plane crashes (one in 1966 and one in 1970), causing the loss of life of 49 and 101 people respectively. But it’s almost Christmas now. And everyone hurries to get the last places available to reach their loved ones or to simply go home.

Julian wants to follow in her parents’ footsteps, and is not afraid of the prospect of spending most of her life in the middle of the jungle: on the other hand, at fourteen, the Koepcke family had settled in a research site founded in 1968 in Panguana: 10 km2 of pure, inhospitable but fascinating Amazon rainforest. The very young Julian does not allow herself to be intimidated by the difficulties of the environment, by the exuberant cruelty of the vegetation, not made by the presence of man, and by a fauna impossible to tame. Rather. He accepts them and is enthusiastic about them, and treasures the teachings of his father, who teaches her the first basics of survival techniques.

There is no trace of hostility, Julian thinks: only a coexistence that must necessarily be based on respect.

Who knows, if on board the LANSA flight Julian is thinking about this, while flying over immense spaces that he has already learned to love.

But there is a sudden blizzard, and the small aircraft starts to jump.

Then comes lightning. The Lockheed is at 3000 meters above sea level, and the impact is atrocious: it disintegrates before it even reaches the ground.

Julian, lands in the jungle still on his seat, still clutched by his seat belt. He looks for the mother, but the impact has thrown her far. He will die shortly after his injuries.

All the rest are scattered in the jungle. 91 people.

Allow me to tell you this story, from this point on, with extreme adherence to the facts. It would be absurd to think that Julian was a small Rambo with exceptional skills but totally devoid of humanity. As she said, the first thought was in fact to desperately look for the mother. Then to collect all the food hidden among the wreckage – mainly sweets, perhaps because of the Christmas period? – therefore, to survive.

He falls asleep among the remains of the aircraft and tries tenaciously to replace despair with the determination to get out of that situation; think of the teachings of his father and in the following eight days, despite a fractured collarbone – very little, for a plane crash! – follows the current of the first river: on the tenth day she finally finds a boat from which she extracts fuel to disinfect the wounds from the larvae that have grown under her epidermis. The following day a group of fishermen sees her and rescues her. An account easy to recall, yet full of effort. Going through such an intricate scenario, getting around problems is not for everyone, let alone a slender little girl.

The story of Julian Koepcke, thanks also to the very young age of the protagonist, is undoubtedly incredible. There are many films and documentaries made about his life.

“I have had nightmares for a long time, for years, and obviously the pain of my mother’s death and that of other people has come back again and again. The thought – Why was I the only survivor? – haunts me. It will always do that. ” Julian Koepcke, 2010

The ability to react, accompanied by solid knowledge that she had made her own, allowed her to survive, guaranteeing her salvation but also remaining stuck like nails in her brain.

The intent of BIVO is, first of all, to understand. What you need, why you need it. What are your goals, what do you fear most. Only in this way can BIVO be with you, anytime and anywhere.

AFTERFACE: Bivo, in the continuous search to make improvements to the products offered, does not forget the lessons of the past, but treasures them to provide for the creation of a nutritious and light product at the same time, easy to always carry with you.

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