80-hour Rescue Effort Fails, Toddler Dies In Borewell

An 80-hour battle since late Friday evening to rescue a two-year-old boy Sujith Wilson, who was trapped in an abandoned bore well near his house in rural Manapparai in Tiruchi district, failed with the child’s dismembered body being extricated in the wee hours of Tuesday.

Rescuers, including personnel from the National Disaster Response Force and State Disaster Response Force along with Fire and Rescue Services personnel, had burned the midnight oil hoping to rescue the toddler.

However, the boy who was initially visible on a camera had slipped to a depth of 88 feet after earth caved in. Efforts to dig a parallel passage using advanced equipment including German manufactured drilling machines were delayed due to rocky soil conditions. At about 2.30 am the rescuers extricated a decomposed and dismembered body of Sujith.

The body was straight taken to the local Government Hospital where a post-mortem was performed and buried at the village burial ground watched by hundreds of mourners.

Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami and Leader of Opposition M K Stalin were among those who personally expressed their condolences to Sujith’s parents. Stalin handed over a cheque for Rs 10 lakh to the family and blamed the government for the failed rescue mission.

Meanwhile, in the Madras High Court, hearing a petition on the issue, a bench of Justices M Sathyanarayanan and N Seshasayee pulled up the State accusing it of being lax in enforcing rules governing sinking of bore wells.

In 2015, five years after the Supreme Court had laid down guidelines to prevent death of children through accidental fall in abandoned bore wells, the Tamil Nadu government had notified rules mandating proper closure of bore wells. However, on the ground little was done to enforce compliance.

“It is not just Sujith’s parents who have lost their son. The nation had also lost a son. As a responsible citizen, everyone should have followed the Supreme Court’s guidance about maintaining the abandoned bore well,” Justice M Sathyanarayanan said.

Following the development, the Chief Minister appealed to the public to close all abandoned bore wells.