Section Thirteen Summary and Analysis

Wednesday, December 20th was a turning point for the survivors in the Fairchild. It was the ninth day since the expedition had set out and the expeditionaries had brought just ten days worth of food. Therefore, their rescue was imminent or would not occur at all. They went about their daily chores with an overall sense of pessimism. Christmas was quickly approaching and they had all hoped to be home for the holiday. Carlitos and Daniel Fernandez both had strong feelings that Canessa and Parrado had been successful, but there was no evidence aside from their gut feelings.

The next morning, on day seventy-one, they used the transistor radio to listen to the news. There they discovered a beautiful sound- it was reported that two of the Fairchild's passengers had walked out of the Andes. Their friends had survived...