NEW DELHI—A 2-year-old boy who fell deep into an unused well in an Indian village has been confirmed dead after rescuers worked nearly 110 hours to reach him, a hospital official said on June 11.
The boy was removed from the well on Tuesday but doctors at a hospital in Chandigarh, the Punjab state capital, found him dead on arrival, Anil Kumar said.
A 2-year-old boy fell into an unused well.
He died after crews tried to for nearly 110 hours to save him.https://t.co/Cz29K6eMVA
— KUTV 2News (@KUTV2News) June 11, 2019
The boy fell into the well outside his house in Sangrur district last Thursday and was stuck at a depth of 125 feet (38 meters), the Press Trust of India news agency said. Authorities dug a parallel well in an attempt to save the boy.
Wells dug for water are often left uncovered in India.
Spanish Rescuers Find Body of Toddler Trapped in Well
In a similar incident earlier this year, Spanish rescuers on Jan. 26 found the dead body of a two-year-old boy who had fallen into a deep narrow well in southern Spain on Jan. 13, a Spanish official said.
Julen Rosello: Hair discovered in search for two-year-old boy trapped down 360ft well in Malaga https://t.co/7QwrjNPG9N pic.twitter.com/g1Tx7vjNSp
— RAY BAEZ (@raybae689) January 17, 2019
Miners had been drilling day and night to reach the boy, Julen, into the borehole – 100 metres (300 feet) deep and just 25 cm (10 inches) wide – which was blocked with soil.
“At 1:25 a.m. the rescue teams reached the area of the well where they were looking for Julen and they found the lifeless body of the little one,” said a government spokesperson in Malaga.
After the announcement, emergency services along with Spanish police attended the family of Julen at a neighbour’s house near the rescue scene where they have been staying during the last days.
There had been no signs of life since the boy had fallen into the borehole as his family was walking through a private estate in Totalan in southern Spain.
Rescuers found the well was blocked with soil, raising fears the well had collapsed on top of the child.
Inside 240ft tunnel where boy, 2, has been trapped for 4 days after falling down well
Julen Rosello’s dad said his family is ‘dead inside’ but they are holding onto hope the child will be rescued from the well in Malaga, Spain pic.twitter.com/wjSB6K2MtE
— Lilian Chan (@bestgug) January 17, 2019
The case has captivated Spain and the whole country is holding its breath for the outcome, not least because Julen’s parents lived another family tragedy in 2017. According to media reports, their three-year-old son died suddenly while walking along a beach not far from Totalan.
#Spain
Massive rescue operation for a 2-year old that fell into a narrow, 100-meters-deep borehole reaches key moment. Miners excavate by hand last leg of the tunnel.
The child fell 8 days ago.From @elpais_espana in English: https://t.co/Igy2Oj8KBH pic.twitter.com/4owxE14lGl
— Iliana Mier-Lavin (@imlavin) January 21, 2019
Residents gathered nearby for a vigil to support the family, many holding homemade placards reading, “All of Spain is with you.”
Reuters contributed to this article.
