After his chopper crashed into the country’s jungle, a presidential candidate in Panama posted a dramatic appeal for assistance on social media.
Dimitri Flores, an independent candidate running for office in 2024, uploaded the footage from the scene of his plane’s accident in a mountainous region in western Panama.
All six passengers on the helicopter, including Mr. Flores, have since been rescued.
Several of them have fractured bones.
“We had an accident here, brother, at 4,500 feet (1,400 meters) in the highlands,” Mr. Flores says in the video as he points to the wreckage of the helicopter in the dense vegetation behind him.
The presidential contender offers the approximate location of the accident and reports that other people were injured: “We have some broken legs and arms between us. We are six in number. But we must thank God for our lives.”
He provides the approximate location of the crash but does not specify what caused the helicopter to crash.
In a later video, the politician introduces two locals who have located the crash scene and complains about the government’s tardy response, stating that he has already waited four hours and twenty minutes.
“I am quite dissatisfied with the authorities. They flew here multiple times with helicopters that cost us millions of dollars, but they were unable to land,” he adds, adding, “There is much work to be done for our country.”
The National Aeronaval Service of Panama stated that it took them three hours on foot to reach the crash site. They praised the villagers for their assistance in locating the travelers in the woods.
As soon as it became apparent that none of the six passengers were gravely injured, numerous Panamanians turned to Twitter to make light of Mr. Flores’s clever use of video in the tense circumstance.
One person even inquired about the politician’s cell phone provider, stating that his signal amid the jungle appeared to be stronger than theirs at home.
Mr. Flores, an attorney, is one of several independent candidates seeking a spot on the 2024 presidential ballot.
