Gram Panchayat member, four others killed in bid to clean open well

[email protected] (News Network)
April 18, 2012
Gulbarga, April 18: In a ghastly accident, five persons, including a gram panchayat member, were killed when they were engaged in emptying and cleaning an open well in the drinking water-starved Ferozabad village of Gulbarga taluk, about 25 km from here on Tuesday.

Chidanand Natikar (23), Basavaraj Keratanalli (23), Sharanayya Mathapathi (18), Ayatolla Mulla (25) and gram panchayat member Hameed Patel (45), all residents of Ferozabad, were cleaning the 45 ft-deep open well to use it for supplying water to the people reeling under acute drought.

The gram panchayat began desilting the well three days ago. Water had started collecting in the well.

On Tuesday, a pump was lowered into the well. As three persons, Basavaraj, Sharanayya and Ayatolla, began snaking down a rope into the well, the pump was switched on. Smoke began billowing out of it. Suffocated by the smoke, the three lost consciousness and fell into the well. In an attempt to rescue them, Chidanand, Razak and Hameed Patel climbed into the well, but they too were overcome by the fumes and fell into the well. Razak was rescued by the others and was later treated at the hospital.

well

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