Chinese woman survives 54 hours in abandoned well battling water snakes

A woman from southeastern China was rescued after surviving 54 hours in an abandoned well, clinging to its wall while battling exhaustion and water snakes.

According to a report by South China Morning Post(SCMP), the incident occurred on September 13, when Qin, 48, went for a walk in the woods near Quanzhou and fell into a concealed shaft. Her family later raised the alarm when she did not return home.

On September 15, Qin’s son contacted the Jinjiang Ruitong Blue Sky Emergency Rescue Centre, which assembled a team of ten rescuers equipped with a thermal imaging drone and launched a search. At around 1:45 p.m., the team heard faint cries, which led them to a well hidden beneath weeds.

When the team cleared the vegetation, they found Qin waist-deep in water, her hands gripping the slippery cracks of the stone wall.

Furthermore, she said that she survived the first hours by swimming, but the structure of the well – narrow at the top and widening at the base – made escape impossible. Showing presence of mind, she wedged stones into the wall to form makeshift footholds and held on.

Speaking to SCMP, Qin described her ordeal: “There were many moments when I completely broke down in despair. The bottom of the well was pitch black, swarming with mosquitoes, and even had a few water snakes swimming nearby.”

“I was covered in mosquito bites and was even bitten once on my arm by a water snake. Fortunately, it wasn’t venomous and didn’t cause any serious harm,” she added.

What kept her going, she said, was her family. “I thought of my parents in their seventies and eighties, and my daughter who just started university. I could not give up and leave them behind.”

After being pulled to safety, Qin was taken to Jinjiang City Hospital and later transferred to Quanzhou First Hospital.

According to the report, doctors confirmed two fractured ribs, a partially collapsed lung, and severe injuries to her hands from gripping the well wall. She remains stable and is expected to make a full recovery.

Her story has since gone viral on the internet, with several social media users calling her endurance extraordinary – proof that grit and determination can shine brightest in the darkest places.

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