Tragic end to 19-hour Ambala borewell mission: 4-year-old declared brought dead after rescue

AMBALA (Haryana): A gruelling 19-hour rescue operation to save a four-year-old child who fell into an open borewell in Dhanaura village ended in heartbreak, as the toddler was declared ‘brought dead’ shortly after being pulled out from the shaft.

The tragedy unfolded early Tuesday morning, triggering a massive multi-agency response that brought together the Indian Army, the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), and local district authorities in a frantic race against time.

The rescue mission faced severe environmental and technical hurdles from the outset. Water had begun seeping into the narrow shaft from a depth of about 60 feet. The child was stuck in a section where water was gradually rising while he was slowly sinking.

#WATCH | Haryana: The 4-year-old child, who fell into a borewell in Dhanaura village of Ambala district, has been rescued. More details are awaited https://t.co/gtTiKlSDTI pic.twitter.com/HT7AFFrp9M

— ANI (@ANI) June 30, 2026

Persistent rain and loose soil repeatedly destabilised the site, forcing the rescue teams to relaunch and alter their extraction operations multiple times.

“The child was stuck in the borewell, which was filled with water. The child was slowly sinking and the water was gradually rising… There were numerous challenges due to which we had to relaunch the operation again and again, and it went on for 18-19 hours,” said NDRF Assistant Commandant Anil Kumar, adding that teams did not observe any signs of life during the final stretch of the extraction.

#WATCH | Ambala, Haryana | City Hospital Medical Officer Rishipal says, “We started the examination of the child as soon as he was rescued… When we conducted ECG at the hospital here, he was declared brought dead. The body of the child was sent to the mortuary… The cause of… https://t.co/WUoWsSZPFG pic.twitter.com/zHBlFe9BQR

— ANI (@ANI) June 30, 2026

After nearly 19 hours of non-stop digging and probing, rescue personnel finally retrieved the 4-year-old from the shaft and rushed him via a waiting health department ambulance to the City Hospital. Medical officials, however, confirmed that the toddler succumbed before reaching medical care.

“We started the examination of the child as soon as he was rescued… When we conducted an ECG at the hospital here, he was declared brought dead,” stated Dr. Rishipal, Medical Officer at the City Hospital. “The body of the child has been sent to the mortuary. The exact cause of death can only be determined after the post-mortem.”

Following the extraction, the hazardous borewell in Dhanaura village was permanently sealed by authorities. (ANI)