Lost boy found after 11 days in Amazon

A 3-year-old boy who was lost in the dense Amazon rain forest was found after 11 days, apparently unharmed but for dehydration and thorns in his feet and legs, police said Friday. Neilson Oliveira Lima disappeared from his home in the rural community Pupuai on September 16, said Amazonas state police officer Ailson Carvalho.

"He went in the forest following his father and he got lost. He was found by his cousin, who was out hunting," Carvalho said in a telephone interview from Caraurai, the nearest town. "Nobody knows what he ate or how he survived."

Carvalho said the boy was found on September 27 about 2 miles (3 kilometers) from his home with thorns covering his feet and legs. He said nothing about his ordeal except to ask for water. He was only taken to the hospital in Caraurai, Brazil, days later because of the long distances. Link

Evanise de Oliveira Lima, the boy's mother, told:
"In the jungle near the house, there are jaguars, hawks, snakes. But his guardian angel and God protected my son."