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Home / World

Save Rayan: World watches as rescuers work to save boy, 5, stuck in well for days

NZ Herald
4 Feb, 2022 07:57 PM3 mins to read

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Rayan fell down the well on Wednesday. Photo / Twitter

Rayan fell down the well on Wednesday. Photo / Twitter

Rescuers are inching closer to the boy they are attempting to save, in a rescue mission that has gripped the world over the past few days.

Rayan, the 5-year-old boy who fell in a well in Morocco, has received oxygen and water with sugar, and many around the world continue to pray for his safe rescue.

The boy has been trapped down the well for more than 65 hours.

The mission to save the boy is being livestreamed on multiple channels on the internet.

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Rayan fell down the narrow 32m deep well on Wednesday in his home village near Bab Berred in the rural Northern Province of Chefchaouen, local media said.

"The child's rescue is approaching," government spokesman Mustapha Baitas said on Friday. "Our hearts are with the family, and we are praying that he will back with them as soon as possible."

Estimates are now at getting him out by dawn. Soon enough he will be out. Manual digging involves some power tools but also manual tools for more precision. #SaveRayan #SaveRyan

— Taha (@logicbloke) February 4, 2022

Almost done #Rayan #SaveRayan pic.twitter.com/vxvvjguA1n

— Honest Pendulum Fan 🟡🔴🇦🇱🇽🇰 (@Lamig226) February 4, 2022

#Morocco they are almost there digging to reach and save #Rayan pic.twitter.com/hjm63Qd3xA

— Bashir Hashi Yussuf (@BashirHashiysf) February 4, 2022

I believe Allah will save Rayan, all Islamic nation pray for him 🙏🏻❤️#أنقذوا_ريان pic.twitter.com/qOhe747KIW

— ريفـ (@_0rEv) February 4, 2022

The shaft was too narrow for rescuers to reach the bottom, so heavy diggers were dispatched to dig a hole alongside it.

The MAP news agency said rescuers had been able to send him oxygen and water via pipes.

Moroccans have launched a distress call for the rescue of 5-year-old Rayan who fell into a deep and narrow well at a depth of 35 meters in Chefchaouen, under the hashtag #SaveRayan.

Several attempts to rescue him failed because the well is so tight.

They sent him food & oxygen. pic.twitter.com/BM15vEoQCo

— Africa Facts Zone (@AfricaFactsZone) February 3, 2022

We are almost there , hold on little Rayan #Rayan #أنقدوا_ريان #SaveRayan pic.twitter.com/ScnY8le3DX

— Ghizlane (@Ghizou16) February 4, 2022

Rayan's father told Le360 news website he had been repairing the well when the boy fell into it.

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Lead rescuer Abdelhabi Temrani told Al Oula television the diameter of the well was less than 45cm.

five year old rayan from morocco fell into a 33-meter depth well and been stuck there for more than 40 hours. rescue teams still have a few meters to dig. they managed to deliver him food & oxygen and set a cam to track him. pls keep him in ur dua’s #SaveRayan pic.twitter.com/iIyKgCnHFr

— yasmine🇲🇦 (@9yasmine_) February 3, 2022

Stay strong my baby #Rayan , they're coming to save you 🥺#SaveRayan
#انقذوا_ريان pic.twitter.com/3A14IrIjhp

— Faten✨ (@faten_Ebr) February 4, 2022

The drama has sparked an outpouring of sympathy online; the Arabic hashtag #SaveRayan has gone viral across North Africa, including in neighbouring Algeria.

Moroccan footballer and PSG star Achraf Hakimi mentioned the rescue efforts on social media, alongside emojis of a broken heart and hands together in prayer.

The boy's fate has also attracted crowds of people to the site of the operation, putting pressure on rescuers operating in "difficult conditions", Baitas said.

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"We call on citizens to let the rescuers do their job and save this child," he said.

Authorities have also prepared a helicopter to take the child to hospital once he is extracted, national news channel 2M said.

- With news.com.au

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