In a remarkable and intricate operation spanning over six hours, Odisha’s disaster response force personnel successfully rescued a newborn baby girl from an abandoned borewell in Sambalpur district. The challenging rescue, involving disaster response force personnel, doctors, and administration, unfolded as the baby, believed to have been deliberately dumped in the borewell, cried intermittently during the operation.
The rescue effort included the use of a victim location camera flown in from the state capital, Bhubaneswar, to provide precise information about the baby’s health. Trapped approximately 13 feet below the ground, the infant was in an inverted position with the head directed downwards. People in Laripali village near the Rengali area of Sambalpur district heard the baby’s cries around 3 p.m. on December 12, prompting the deployment of fire service personnel and earth-movers for the rescue operation.
As temperatures dropped rapidly, doctors strategically lowered an electric bulb to heat the space around the baby, addressing the potential threat of hypothermia. The successful rescue, capturing the resilience of the newborn, was followed by the baby’s immediate transport to the Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Science and Research, Burla, where a team of pediatricians was ready to provide necessary medical attention.
