Eva Deschamps / January 2, 2023
Hundreds of rescuers were struggling on Monday to rescue a 10-year-old boy who fell two days ago into a 35-meter-deep hole at a bridge construction site in southern Vietnam.
Thai Ly Hao Nam was apparently looking for scrap metal when he fell into a hollow concrete pillar just 25 centimeters wide poured to build a new bridge in the southern province of Dong Thap, a rescuer said by phone.
"We are doing our best. We cannot yet say what condition the boy is in," added the rescuer, who gave only Sau's name.
Authorities "are not sure of the boy's current situation. He has stopped interacting with the outside although oxygen was still being pumped" into the hole, Vietnamese newspaper Tuoi Tre reported.
According to media reports, rescuers tried to drill and soften the surrounding soil in an attempt to pull the pillar up and get the child out.
On Monday, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh asked federal rescuers to join the efforts of local authorities to save the boy.