Hopes fade for trapped toddler

Firefighters stepped up their efforts Tuesday to locate and rescue a 3-year-old boy who fell into a 100-meter deep shaft in a village in Chaoyang district on Monday.

The child, surnamed Nie, fell into the shaft around 5:40 pm Monday, but as it is filled with water to a depth of 40 meters, and the construction of the shaft poses difficulties, it is now highly unlikely that the boy has survived, said a member of the armed police at the scene.

"It's been nearly 20 hours now [Tuesday midday], he might not be alive," the officer told the Global Times.

The child was playing ball with his mother in Nangao village, Cuigezhuang township, at the time, according to local residents, who witnessed the accident.

"The boy tried to get his ball when it rolled toward the well and he suddenly disappeared. When his mother noticed, he was trapped in the shaft," a witness surnamed Wang told the Global Times.

The shaft is for air-conditioning, but it is not in service. It is located in front of a building materials market at the village, which is still under construction. The cover of the shaft, which is only 35 centimeters wide, was removed.

Wang claimed that at first, the child was stuck in the shaft, and could talk with his mother. But after about 10 minutes, there was a big noise from inside, and there was no longer any response.

The parents are migrant workers from Anhui Province, according to the Beijing News Tuesday.

At the scene Tuesday, there were dozens of police cars, fire engines and ambulances and the rescue team numbered over 100.

The area is cordoned off and guarded by several security guards, who prevented reporters from entering, however, an excavator was digging a pit to the south of the well, so it could lead to the deeper part of the shaft to approach the boy.

"We attempted to go down with a rope fastened around the waist, but it's too narrow for an adult, so now we are trying to locate the boy using a camera and torch tied to a rope," a firefighter, who refused to give his name, told the Global Times.

Water has filled the shaft up to a depth of 40 meters, posted the Chaoyang district government via its Sina microblog Tuesday.

The boy's green plastic ball and a blue shoe were found floating on the water, reported news portal qianlong.com Tuesday.

Another villager said the area in front of the building materials market is a popular evening gathering place for local residents.

"We suspect the cover was removed by workers due to the construction work, but we never saw any warning signs there," the villager said.

As of press time Tuesday night, there was no update as to the fate of the boy.