18 hours passed, 2-year-old still stuck in abandoned tube well

The entire village in Tanore, Rajshahi, is holding its breath as two-year-old Sajid remains trapped inside an abandoned deep tube well, even after 18 hours. Rescue efforts have so far been unsuccessful.

The incident occurred on Wednesday (10 December) around 1:15 pm, when Sajid was playing in a paddy field in Dhankhar, Koelhat Purba Para village. The toddler suddenly fell into a 50-foot-deep narrow hole with a diameter of just 8 inches. Five units of the Fire Service have been involved in the rescue operation.

After initial attempts, the Fire Service realised that Sajid could not be retrieved without an excavator to remove the soil. Efforts were made to locate a high-powered excavator, but none were available in the entire Tanore upazila. Finally, around 8:00 pm, two small excavators were brought from neighbouring Mohanpur upazila, and the rescue teams began digging.

Locals have criticised delays in the rescue operation, blaming administrative negligence and inefficiency. They pointed out that Sajid fell into the hole around 1:00 pm, but an excavator did not arrive until 8:00 pm.

Nazmus Sakib, a local resident, said, “If a larger excavator had been used from the beginning, the rescue might have been completed much faster.”

Abdur Rauf, Station Manager of Tanore Upazila Fire Service, said, “We initially searched for an excavator within Tanore but could not find one. Later, we brought two small excavators from Mohanpur and started digging. Around 1:45 am, a high-powered excavator finally arrived, and soil removal is now progressing rapidly. We hope to complete the rescue within a few hours.”