Woman survives 15 days trapped in China well
A Chinese farmer makes his way into a dried-up well to dig deeper for water after an extended drought in Fuyuan, southwest China’s Yunnan province on February 20, 2012. A woman who was trapped in a well in central China for 15 days was rescued on September 16, 2013.
A 38-year-old woman survived 15 days trapped in a 12-foot deep abandoned well in central China's Zhongfeng Village in Henan province.
Su Qixiu was searching for medicinal herbs in a cornfield when she fell into the well on Sept. 1. As she fell, she grabbed onto some of the corn stalks that had been hiding the hole in the ground, which ended up being her only nourishment, alongside rainwater, for over two weeks.
More from GlobalPost: Baby elephant rescued from a well by villagers in India (VIDEO)
"There was nothing [in the well], [so I] ate a bit of raw corn and called for help every day," Su said.
"I spent every day hoping that someone would walk by and rescue me. I called out every day, and although there was no response, I did not give up."
On Sept. 16, a farmer harvesting corn near the well heard Su's cries for help and called the local fire brigade. A team from the Xiayi County Fire Department rushed to the scene and lowered a fireman into the well in order to pull Su out.
She was then taken by ambulance to the Xiayi County Red Cross Hospital in Shangqiu.
Su did not have any serious injuries and was in stable condition, but has not been able to eat any solid food or say anything since her rescue. She reportedly weighed 115 pounds before her fall, but was 80 pounds after spending 15 days in the well.
Every day, reporters and producers at The World are hard at work bringing you human-centered news from across the globe. But we can’t do it without you. We need your support to ensure we can continue this work for another year.
Make a gift today, and you’ll help us unlock a matching gift of $67,000!