Newborn rescued from 15-ft deep borewell after six-hour operation

Earthmovers were deployed to rescue the newborn who was thrown into a borewell in Sambalpur.

A newborn who had fallen in a 15-ft deep abandoned borewell in the western Odisha district of Sambalpur was rescued by state disaster response force personnel after a six-hour-long operation that entailed sending oxygen and lighting up filament bulb to keep her warm.

The newborn was thrown inside the borewell and no one claimed the baby after it was rescued.

The newborn, who rescuers said was thrown inside the open borewell at Laripali in the Rengali area of Sambalpur on Tuesday, would have died had some passersby not heard her cries.

Around 3pm, people heard the muffled wails of the newborn and alerted fire service personnel. Soon earth movers were deployed and a pit was dug near the borewell to reach the child.

“We dug a parallel opening to reach out to the borewell pipe in consultation with experts. After reaching a depth of around 25 ft, the team cut the borewell pipe with an electric cutter initially and then with a hand saw. The baby was stuck at 13 ft below the surface,” said Sudhansu Sarangi, DG, Odisha Fire Services.

The rescuers used a victim location camera that was flown in from Bhubaneswar which showed that the baby was stuck in an inverted position with its head directed downwards. The team of doctors first dropped down an electric bulb to heat up the space around the baby's oxygen supply. Soon after the rescue, the baby was rushed to the Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Science and Research, Burla where a team of paediatricians were ready to attend the victim.

However, no one has come forward to claim the baby.

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik expressed happiness over the safe rescue and said, “It is a matter of great relief. I wish a long life for the baby.”