The child, identified only as Rayan, was stuck in the well, which has a depth of more than 100 feet in Chefchaouen province, located in the northern area of the country, CNN reported.
Update 4:07 p.m. EST Feb. 5: Morocco’s king said that the 5-year-old boy, identified only as Rayan, died after he was flown to a hospital, The Associated Press reported.
King Mohammad VI called the boy’s parents to express his condolences, in a statement released by the palace.
Update 3:48 p.m. EST Feb. 5: A rescue crew in Morocco pulled a 5-year-old boy out of a deep well Saturday after he was trapped for four days, The New York Times reported.
The condition of the boy was not immediately known, the newspaper reported.
The boy’s parents watched as the boy, identified only as Rayan, was removed from the well and placed on a stretcher, the Times reported. He was put into a waiting ambulance and moved to a helicopter, which will take him to a hospital in a larger city.
An Associated Press reporter at the scene saw the Rayan wrapped in a yellow blanket after he emerged from the tunnel that was specifically dug for the rescue.
Breaking News: A 5-year-old boy was pulled from a 100-foot well in Morocco after being trapped for four days. His condition is unclear. https://t.co/ZPzuwaYoEi
Original report: Rescuers used a rope to send oxygen and water down to the boy, along with a camera to monitor his movements, according to The Associated Press. Earlier Saturday, the head of the rescue committee, Abdelhadi Temrani, said it was not possible to monitor the boy’s condition.
“It’s hard to know his status, but we have great, great, great hope,” Temrani said.
Rescuers in Morocco work to free 5-year-old Rayan, who has been trapped in an underground well for days, in a delicate operation to dig out large parts of a hillside where there is a risk of landslide https://t.co/DoD6yXqLqBpic.twitter.com/VQziYqBYIr
Rayan has been stuck in the well near his home in the village of Ighrane since Tuesday afternoon, The New York Times reported. Rescuers had brought in bulldozers to dig a parallel shaft from where they could tunnel through to reach the child, according to the newspaper. However, officials feared that either part of the well or the parallel shaft would collapse before they could reach the boy.
“We’re almost there,” one of the operation’s leaders, Abdesalam Makoudi, told the BBC on Friday afternoon. “We’ve been working non-stop for three days and tiredness is kicking in, but the whole rescue team is hanging on.”
Medical staff are at the site to attend to the boy once he is pulled out, the AP reported. A helicopter is also on standby to transport him to the nearest hospital.
Rescuers say they are close to reaching 5-year-old Rayan, who fell deep into a well on Tuesday in Morocco. Will they have reached him in time? A nation hopes for a happy ending. Follow the rescue effort live, here:https://t.co/65MI6e4Azz
Pictures on Moroccan media have shown Rayan huddled at the bottom of the disused well, Reuters reported. The well is 18 inches wide at the top and narrows, the news outlet reported, preventing rescuers from making a direct descent into it.
In an interview with Le360, Rayan’s father said that he had been fixing the well, which he owns, when his son fell in while playing nearby, the Times reported.
“Everyone is doing their best so that he comes out alive and that we can take him in our arms by the end of the day,” Rayan’s father told the news agency.
The village of about 500 people has many deep wells, many used for irrigating the cannabis crop that is the main source of income in the poor, remote and arid region of Morocco’s Rif Mountains, according to the AP. Most of the wells have protective covers.
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Boy trapped in Moroccan well dies A civil defense worker attempts to rescue a 5 year old boy who fell into a hole near the town of Bab Berred near Chefchaouen, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022 in Paris. A third day of efforts to rescue a 5-year-old boy who fell into a well in northern Morocco was halted for a time on Friday following concerns about ground stability, fueling despair among those hoping to reach him. The boy, identified as Rayan, fell into a 32-meter (105-feet) deep well located outside his home in the northern village of Ighran in Morocco's Chefchaouen province on Tuesday evening. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy) (Mosa'ab Elshamy/AP)
Boy trapped in Moroccan well dies Civil defense workers and local authorities attempt to rescue a 5-year-old boy who fell into a hole in the northern village of Ighran in Morocco's Chefchaouen province, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022 in Ighran. Rescuers inched closer Friday to reaching the 5-year-old boy trapped for three days in a well in Morocco, in an operation hampered by concerns about ground stability that has captivated the North African country. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy) (Mosa'ab Elshamy/AP)
Boy trapped in Moroccan well dies People stand next to tractors at nightfall as they observe a rescue mission of a 5-year-old boy who fell into a hole in the northern village of Ighran in Morocco's Chefchaouen province, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022 in Ighran. Rescuers inched closer Friday to reaching the 5-year-old boy trapped for three days in a well in Morocco, in an operation hampered by concerns about ground stability that has captivated the North African country. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy) (Mosa'ab Elshamy/AP)
Boy trapped in Moroccan well dies A woman reacts as civil defense workers and local authorities attempt to rescue a 5 year old boy who fell into a hole near the town of Bab Berred near Chefchaouen, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022 in Ighran. A third day of efforts to rescue a 5-year-old boy who fell into a well in northern Morocco was halted for a time on Friday following concerns about ground stability, fueling despair among those hoping to reach him. The boy, identified as Rayan, fell into a 32-meter (105-feet) deep well located outside his home in the northern village of Ighran in Morocco's Chefchaouen province on Tuesday evening.(AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy) (Mosa'ab Elshamy/AP)
Boy trapped in Moroccan well dies Residents watch civil defense workers and local authorities attempting to rescue a 5-year-old boy who fell into a hole in the northern village of Ighran in Morocco's Chefchaouen province, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022 in Ighran. Rescuers inched closer Friday to reaching a 5-year-old boy trapped for three days in a well in Morocco, in an operation hampered by concerns about ground stability that has captivated the North African country. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy) (Mosa'ab Elshamy/AP)
Boy trapped in Moroccan well dies Residents observe civil defense workers and local authorities attempting to rescue a boy who fell into a hole in the northern village of Ighran in Morocco's Chefchaouen province, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022. Rescuers inched closer Friday to reaching a 5-year-old boy trapped for three days in a well in Morocco, in an operation hampered by concerns about ground stability that has captivated the North African country.(AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy) (Mosa'ab Elshamy/AP)
Boy trapped in Moroccan well dies Residents watch in concern as civil defense and local authorities attempting to rescue a 5 year old boy who fell into a hole near the town of Bab Berred near Chefchaouen, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022 in Paris. A third day of efforts to rescue a 5-year-old boy who fell into a well in northern Morocco was halted for a time on Friday following concerns about ground stability, fueling despair among those hoping to reach him. The boy, identified as Rayan, fell into a 32-meter (105-feet) deep well located outside his home in the northern village of Ighran in Morocco's Chefchaouen province on Tuesday evening.(AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy) (Mosa'ab Elshamy/AP)
Boy trapped in Moroccan well dies Women watch in concern as civil defense and local authorities attempting to rescue a 5 year old boy who fell into a hole near the town of Bab Berred near Chefchaouen, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022 in Paris. A third day of efforts to rescue a 5-year-old boy who fell into a well in northern Morocco was halted for a time on Friday following concerns about ground stability, fueling despair among those hoping to reach him. The boy, identified as Rayan, fell into a 32-meter (105-feet) deep well located outside his home in the northern village of Ighran in Morocco's Chefchaouen province on Tuesday evening.(AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy) (Mosa'ab Elshamy/AP)
Boy trapped in Moroccan well dies A tractor digs through a mountain during the rescue mission of a boy who fell into a hole in the northern village of Ighran in Morocco's Chefchaouen province, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022. Rescuers inched closer Friday to reaching a 5-year-old boy trapped for three days in a well in Morocco, in an operation hampered by concerns about ground stability that has captivated the North African country.(AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy) (Mosa'ab Elshamy/AP)
Boy trapped in Moroccan well dies A man distributes bread to people as they watch civil defense workers and local authorities attempt to rescue a 5-year-old boy who fell into a hole in the northern village of Ighran in Morocco's Chefchaouen province, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022. Rescuers inched closer Friday to reaching a 5-year-old boy trapped for three days in a well in Morocco, in an operation hampered by concerns about ground stability that has captivated the North African country.(AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy) (Mosa'ab Elshamy/AP)
Boy trapped in Moroccan well dies Residents watch civil defense and local authorities attempting to rescue a 5 year old boy who fell into a hole near the town of Bab Berred near Chefchaouen, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022 in Paris. A third day of efforts to rescue a 5-year-old boy who fell into a well in northern Morocco was halted for a time on Friday following concerns about ground stability, fueling despair among those hoping to reach him. The boy, identified as Rayan, fell into a 32-meter (105-feet) deep well located outside his home in the northern village of Ighran in Morocco's Chefchaouen province on Tuesday evening. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy) (Mosa'ab Elshamy/AP)
Boy trapped in Moroccan well dies A member of security forces stands guard as civil defense workers and local authorities attempting to rescue a 5-year-old boy who fell into a hole in the northern village of Ighran in Morocco's Chefchaouen province, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022. A third day of efforts to rescue the boy who fell into a well in northern Morocco was halted for a time on Friday following concerns about ground stability, fueling despair among those hoping to reach him. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy) (Mosa'ab Elshamy/AP)
Boy trapped in Moroccan well dies A landslide occurs near the hole where a boy fell during a rescue mission in the northern village of Ighran in Morocco's Chefchaouen province, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022. Rescuers inched closer Friday to reaching a 5-year-old boy trapped for three days in a well in Morocco, in an operation hampered by concerns about ground stability that has captivated the North African country. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy) (Mosa'ab Elshamy/AP)
Boy trapped in Moroccan well dies Tractors dig through a mountain as they take part in a rescue mission of a 5-year-old boy who fell into a hole in the northern village of Ighran in Morocco's Chefchaouen province, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022 in Ighran. Rescuers inched closer Friday to reaching a 5-year-old boy trapped for three days in a well in Morocco, in an operation hampered by concerns about ground stability that has captivated the North African country. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy) (Mosa'ab Elshamy/AP)
Boy trapped in Moroccan well dies Residents watch civil defense workers and local authorities attempting to rescue a 5 year old boy who fell into a hole near the town of Bab Berred near Chefchaouen, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022 in Ighran. A third day of efforts to rescue a 5-year-old boy who fell into a well in northern Morocco was halted for a time on Friday following concerns about ground stability, fueling despair among those hoping to reach him. The boy, identified as Rayan, fell into a 32-meter (105-feet) deep well located outside his home in the northern village of Ighran in Morocco's Chefchaouen province on Tuesday evening.(AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy) (Mosa'ab Elshamy/AP)
Boy trapped in Moroccan well dies A residents climbs in a tree to watch civil defense and local authorities attempting to rescue a 5 year old boy who fell into a hole near the town of Bab Berred near Chefchaouen, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022 in Ighran. A third day of efforts to rescue a 5-year-old boy who fell into a well in northern Morocco was halted for a time on Friday following concerns about ground stability, fueling despair among those hoping to reach him. The boy, identified as Rayan, fell into a 32-meter (105-feet) deep well located outside his home in the northern village of Ighran in Morocco's Chefchaouen province on Tuesday evening.(AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy) (Mosa'ab Elshamy/AP)
Boy trapped in Moroccan well dies Rescue workers roll cylinders as they attempt to build a tunnel to rescue a 5-year-old boy who fell into a hole in the northern village of Ighran in Morocco's Chefchaouen province, Friday, Feb. 4, 2022. A third day of efforts to rescue the who fell into a well in northern Morocco was halted for a time on Friday following concerns about ground stability, fueling despair among those hoping to reach him. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy) (Mosa'ab Elshamy/AP)
