Man falls ‘headfirst’ into well and gets trapped 75 feet down, Virginia officials say

A man died when he fell headfirst into a well and became wedged upside down in the dark, Virginia officials say.

It happened around 1 p.m. on Friday, March 1, at a rural home near Rustburg, and the shaft was deep and “narrow,” officials said. Rustburg is about 110 miles west of Richmond.

“We were advised a man was trapped about 75 feet down a well, head first,” the Rustburg Fire Department wrote in a March 1 Facebook post.

The 73-year-old man was “unresponsive” when firefighters arrived, possibly due to his head being under water, WSLS reported.

“Do to the nature of the accident, Lynchburg Fire Department was also added to the call. ... Crews worked about 4 hours to free the man,” Rustburg fire officials said..

He did not survive, Campbell County Public Safety told McClatchy News. An investigation into what caused him to fall is underway.

His identity has not been released as of March 4, and investigators have not said how he fell into the well.

A well drilling service also responded to help, officials said.

This story was originally published March 4, 2024 at 7:53 AM with the headline "Man falls ‘headfirst’ into well and gets trapped 75 feet down, Virginia officials say."