Bajo Chiquito (Panama) (EFE).- Fractures, lack of water, food. An injury or lack of food can lead to death in the Darién junglethe natural border between Colombia and Panama that hundreds of migrants cross daily, preventing the difficult advance along cliffs, trails and rivers. Some die, others manage to survive through the solidarity of anonymous travelers.
“I fell, I stepped on a mud hole and I fell, hitting all the weight of my body,” Venezuelan Elsy explains to EFE while pointing to her leg. She sways, but they soon hold her back so she doesn’t fall. “I was left alone until I found them”he says, and looks around.
Elsy is surrounded by a dozen Venezuelan compatriots, mostly young people. They are on the bank of the Tuquesa River a few meters from the town of Bajo Chiquito, the first indigenous settlement after crossing the Darién for days. They will soon be able to rest after what they experienced in the jungle, where they claim that seven bodies were found, “with a day or two of dead bodies.”
The journey of migrants through the Darién
One of the Venezuelans in the group explains that They found Elsy “weak, she was barely breathing”but she recovered after giving her IVs, feeding her and carrying her on a stretcher. “We rested it in places that have shade, we rested it for a while, half an hour, then we continued.”
Was the woman’s son, about ten years old, who begged them to help his mother. “He asked us, crying, to (…) please swear that we were going to bring him his mother, that he needed his mother,” explains another young woman, and then points to a companion, “the protagonist,” who came to the rescue.
“It’s a life, I don’t wish it on anyone. I just want to see him and say ‘there’s your mom.’ I told him that I wouldn’t leave it lying around, and I brought it to him,” explains the young man with a broken voice, cries, and thanks the rest for their help.
About 170 deaths in 2024
Elsy was lucky. According to the ‘Missing Migrants Project’ of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), so far this year at least 170 migrants have died or disappeared while crossing the Darien.mostly due to drowning (92), followed by violent acts (35), and 19 due to accidents, illness, extreme environmental conditions or lack of water and food.
Since they began counting cases in 2014, the project has recorded 440 deaths, with 2024 as the year in which the most deaths have been recordedfollowed by 2022 with 146, and 52 in 2023, when there was a historical record of migrants who crossed the Darién, with 520,000.
This despite the fact that, according to data from the Panamanian authorities, There has been a decrease in the number of migrants crossing the Darién, with 274,444 as of October 1336.5% less than the 432,211 registered in the same period of 2023.
Last Friday, Panamanian security forces reported the rescue of a 49-year-old woman. Her teenage daughter had arrived in Bajo Chiquito warning that her mother had a fracture and could not continue.. After locating her, they transported her by canoe to the town, where she received medical attention.
“I am a jungle survivor”
After spending a night in Bajo Chiquito, The migrants continue the journey by canoe to the Lajas Blancas immigration reception center, where they receive attention from the Panamanian authorities. and international organizations, before continuing their bus route to North America. In the shelter, in an indoor area with dozens of tents set up, is Eva Mendoza, still traumatized by what she experienced in the jungle.
“We had about six days in the jungle, horrible, inexplicable jungle. We saw dead people, at least in my case I lost my family, my group, and I was out in the open. from the jungle with my two children, I am a survivor of the jungle,” she says, until “the Red Cross” was able to rescue her in a canoe. Mendoza explains that “she was dehydrated” and her feet “with second-degree burns.”
In one of the wooden cabins at the immigration center is Colombian Carolina Castillo with her six- and 14-year-old children. He’s been there for almost four months. waiting for her husband to recover in a hospital in the Panamanian capital after suffering an accident in the jungle.
“We were camping and the downpour caught us, lightning hit a tree and the tree fell and covered our camp. (…) He fractured his leg, head and hip, and he has been hospitalized there for four months now,” he says, although he adds: “He has improved a lot, he will soon be leaving the hospital.”
Venezuelan Ángela (she is a pseudonym, she asks not to be identified), says that 14 people, including seven children, left to cross the Darién, but that The group was gradually growing in the jungle with “many single mothers with their children.” that they were “abandoned” for advancing slowly. In the end they gathered 45 children in their group.
“Of course, Since they don’t keep up with the rhythm and they are big children who have to be carried and everything, they leave them on the road and they wait for the groups that follow and join together.. We saw dead people on the way, injured people, we tried to rescue a man, we left him in another camp, but I just found out that an older man about 60 years old died,” he says.
Other migrants also talk about that man, an Ecuadorian police officer. Ángela insists that they tried “to rescue him but nothing, he had the wound, it was serious, and he was already very dehydrated, so it was impossible.”
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**Interview with Elsy, a Venezuelan Migrant in Bajo Chiquito, Panama**
**Editor:** Thank you for joining us today, Elsy. Can you describe what you experienced while crossing the Darién jungle?
**Elsy:** Thank you for having me. The journey was brutal. I fell into a mud hole, and the weight of my body hurt my leg badly. I was left behind in that jungle for what felt like hours. I was weak and scared, but my fellow travelers found me and helped.
**Editor:** It’s heart-wrenching to hear what you went through. You mentioned being rescued by others. Can you tell us more about that moment?
**Elsy:** Yes, it was truly a blessing. I was barely breathing when they found me. They gave me IVs, fed me, and carried me on a stretcher. I remember a young boy crying for help, asking them to save his mother. It was a devastating sight, but they took care of us.
**Editor:** Many migrants have lost their lives in the jungle. Have you encountered any of these tragic situations?
**Elsy:** Yes, tragically. I saw seven bodies during my journey. It’s a harsh reality that many do not survive this crossing. The jungle is unforgiving, and without water, food, or help, injuries can quickly become fatal.
**Editor:** How are you and the other migrants coping with the psychological toll of this journey?
**Elsy:** It’s difficult. Many of us have witnessed death and loss. We try to support each other, but the trauma lingers. I am thankful to be alive, to be at Bajo Chiquito now, but the memories of the jungle will stay with me forever.
**Editor:** What are your hopes as you continue your journey from Bajo Chiquito?
**Elsy:** My hope is to reach a place where my family can be safe and healthy. I want to see my loved ones again and say, “You made it, and so did I.” Despite everything, I still believe in a better future.
**Editor:** Thank you for sharing your story with us, Elsy. Your experience sheds light on the struggles faced by many migrants. We wish you safety and strength in the days ahead.
**Elsy:** Thank you for listening and sharing our story. It means a lot.
Of me. Without their solidarity, I don’t know what would have happened.
**Editor:** It’s incredible how the support from strangers can make such a difference. What do you think keeps migrants like yourself going in such dire situations?
**Elsy:** Hope. We all left our homes searching for a better life, and despite the dangers, we hold on to that hope. Knowing there are others struggling alongside us creates a bond. We share food and water, and we watch out for each other. It’s that solidarity that makes a difference between life and death.
**Editor:** You mentioned seeing others who were not as fortunate. How did that impact you during your journey?
**Elsy:** It was traumatic. I saw seven bodies in the jungle, and it really hit me hard. Each one of them had a story, a family waiting for them. Those experiences haunt me, but they also fuel my determination to survive and honor their memories by keeping going.
**Editor:** Can you tell us about your next steps now that you have reached Bajo Chiquito?
**Elsy:** After resting here, we will be taken to the Lajas Blancas immigration center for medical attention and then continue our journey to North America. I just want to be reunited with my family and provide a better future for them.
**Editor:** Thank you, Elsy, for sharing your story. Your resilience is inspiring, and we hope for your safe journey ahead.
**Elsy:** Thank you. I appreciate the opportunity to speak about our struggles and the support we need.