Man Survives Fall Into Abandoned Well In Cohasset
COHASSET (CBS) – A man survived a frightening fall into a narrow well in a Cohasset yard overnight.
Investigators said 37-year-old Tim Galligan went out to his backyard on Ripley Road just after midnight to get his dog. When he didn't come back inside, a relative went to look for him and then heard his calls for help. The man had fallen ten to 15 feet into the uncovered hole and ended up trapped.
"It appears that the cover had been moved. It was a steel cover at the top of this abandoned (well), about an 18-inch cover, round. And it appears that somebody may have moved it off. And he was walking across the backyard and just fell down through the hole." said Cohasset Fire Chief Robert Silvia.
The Plymouth County Technical Rescue Team was called in to get Galligan out.
They used atmospheric monitoring and pumped fresh air into the hole for both the rescuers and the victim.
After about an hour and 40 minutes of waiting and another 22 minutes of rescue efforts, he was safely pulled out.
The man, who has not been identified, was flown to Massachusetts General Hospital, where he's being treated for neck and back injuries. He was conscious and stable leaving the scene, even talking.
"He was saying, 'I want to get out of here, I want to get out of here, get me out of here," recalled Alex Merry of the Plymouth County Mechanical Rescue Team.
Merry also said, "I didn't know what to expect, the last thing I was expecting was an old abandoned septic tank."
Officials said the man was lying down with his feet straight in front of him.
Silvia said this is the first time he's been part of a rescue from a well in all of his years on the job.
"That must have been quite an experience, falling, especially in the dark in the middle of the night, knowing, 'how am I going to get out of here?' or 'who's going to know I'm down here?'" said neighbor Henry Rattenbury. "I certainly hope he is alright."
No other information is available at this point in the investigation.
