PATHANAMTHITTA: In a dramatic rescue operation, an 87-year-old woman was saved after she slipped and fell into a well near Adoor in Pathanamthitta district early on Wednesday. The incident occurred at Thatta, in Mammoodu, when Shantha Velamparambil ventured out of her house around midnight.
The family members awoke to find the door open and Shantha missing. Their search led them to the well, where they found her clinging precariously to a motor pipe, suspended about 15 feet deep in the 30-foot well.
According to the family, the woman fell into the well because there was no safety wall around it. A neighbour soon alerted the rescue team. “We received a call around 4 am and reached the spot within 15 minutes. The family said they went to bed around 10 pm. The incident happened around midnight,” an officer with the fire and rescue services said.
The rescuers worked meticulously to ensure Shantha, who was brought up in a net, was safe after being trapped for several hours.
“She must have spent at least three to four hours inside the well amid incessant rain. When we lifted her up using a net, she was able to stand in it without any problem,” the officer said.
Despite the ordeal, Shantha remained conscious and was given immediate medical attention. True to her spirit, as soon as she reached the top of the well, she walked into her house for a change of dress as if nothing had happened, the officer said. She did not suffer any injuries.
“Only that she felt a bit cold,” he said.
While the fire and rescue services team’s swift action earned praise from the local residents, the woman’s family members were a relieved lot.
A fire and rescue services team led by station officer Vinod Kumar V and senior rescue officer Aji Khan Yusuf were involved in the operation. Sajad, Abhilash, Sreejith, Shine Kumar, Santhosh, and Ajayakumar were part of the mission.