Efforts to rescue a five-year-old boy stuck in a Moroccan well continued a fourth day on Saturday, the Associated Press (AP) reported.
However, the unstable soil surrounding the child threatened attempts to get him out safely, and many feared time was running out.
Online messages showing support and concern for little Rayan came in from all over the globe as rescuers continued their efforts overnight.
Crews used rope to get oxygen and water to him and also a camera to monitor his condition.
A video clip posted Friday showed the boy in the small space:
Early Saturday, leader of the rescue committee, Abdelhadi Temrani, stated, “It is not possible to determine the child’s condition at all at this time. But we hope to God that the child is alive.”
More video footage showed rescuers wearing helmets and reflective gear at the scene:
The AP report continued:
Rayan fell into a 32-meter (105-feet) well located outside his home in the village of Ighran in Morocco’s mountainous northern Chefchaouen province on Tuesday evening. He is now trapped in a hole too narrow for rescuers to reach safely. For three days, search crews used bulldozers to dig a parallel ditch. Then on Friday, they started excavating a horizontal tunnel to reach the trapped boy. Morocco’s MAP news agency said that experts in topographical engineering were called upon for help.
Temrani told local television 2M on Saturday rescue crews had a mere two meters (about two yards) to dig to reach the hole where the child was.
“The diggers encountered a hard rock on their way, and were therefore very careful to avoid any landslides or cracks,” he explained.
“It took about five hours to get rid of the rock because the digging was slow and was done in a careful way to avoid creating cracks in the hole from below, which could threaten the life of the child as well as the rescue workers,” he added.
Efforts have been difficult due to fears the dirt around the well might collapse on the child.
The exact circumstances of how he tumbled into the well remained unclear, the AP report said.
“I pray and beg God that he comes out of that well alive and safe,” his mother, Wassima Kharchich, told 2M, according to Sky News. “Please God, ease my pain and his, in that hole of dust.”