73-Year-Old Rescued From Well

A 73-year-old woman fell 20 feet down an abandoned well and was trapped for 6-1/2 hours before firefighters lifted her to safety.

“I was just covered with dirt and all this stuff,” Rachel Chandler told KCAL-TV Los Angeles from her hospital bed. “The Lord was with me - I cried. I just begged the Lord to hurry up and bring my daughter home.”

Chandler suffered a fractured wrist, a bump on her head and was being monitored for signs of spinal injury. She was expected to stay four or five days in the hospital, but doctors were pleased with her condition.

Chandler tumbled into the 40-inch-diameter brick-lined structure in her daughter’s back yard Thursday afternoon, said Capt. Andrew Bennett of the Riverside County Fire Department. A rotted wooden cover apparently gave way, and parts of a twin-sized bed frame she apparently was carrying tumbled down with her.

A passer-by discovered Chandler shortly before 6 p.m. and firefighters pulled her out about 8:30 p.m.