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An American family with two young children have gone missing in the Amazon after the ferry they were on was robbed by pirates.

The tourists have not been seen since Sunday, when heavily-armed pirates are believed to have hijacked the boat in Brazil.

A huge police operation has been launched to find Adam Harris Hearteau, 39, and Emily Faith Harteau, 37, and their two daughters, Sierra, three, and Colette, seven.

The family, who left California five years ago and have posted about their adventures to more than 110,000 Instagram followers, vanished after the robbery.

Witnesses said heavily armed men boarded the ferry and kept the crew hostage for hours, Folha Do Progresso reports.

Reports in Brazil claim Mrs Harteau was attacked by the hijackers.

(Image: Instagram) (Image: Instagram)

They were travelling to Breves, on the ilha de Marajo in Para, an island in an estuary in the Amazon, north Brazil.

Some of the cargo stolen from the ferry was found in woodland, but the family, from California, have not been seen.

Helicopters and patrol boats have been dispatched in order to find the family, after their van was found.

(Image: Instagram) (Image: Instagram)

The hijack happened at around 7pm, when the boat was forced into an area known as Porto dos Dias.

Those on board had everything stolen and were left stranded on the ship.

The family are said to have a house in Florianopolis, south Brazil, and to have a property in the United States.

Their Instagram account, which has more than 118,000 followers, describe them as a nomad family of four who have been on the road since 2012.

Their blog, Our Open Road, said the family was exploring South America 'with no end in sight'.

Mr Harteau is an artist, and Mrs Harteau is a fashion designer.

Investigators have been trying to contact the tourists' families in the United States and checking social media to see if they have been in touch.

(Image: Instagram)

In a statement a spokesperson from the Ministry of Public Security and Social Defence (Segup) said: "We have launched a full search with the civil police, military police, air rescue and fire department involved.

"We are searching social networks for any form of contact made by the family and are in touch with their relatives in Florianopolis, where the family have a residence and with their family in the USA."

Police reported that none of the pirates involved in the robbery have been identified so far.

A police spokesperson told: "Several heavily armed men boarded the ferry and pusher and kept the passengers and crew hostage for hours.

"The family were in a van and we found it abandoned in the forest but no sign of the couple and their young children.

"There are some reports the family jumped into the river after being held hostage for hours. We have been told Emily was attacked by the pirates, but this still has to be substantiated.

"We are urgently searching for the family and hoping they will have been helped by locals in surrounding villages. But as of now they are still missing."