Woman Rescued After Falling Into Well In New Jersey
HILLSDALE, N.J. (CBSNewYork) -- A New Jersey woman took a hard fall deep into a well she had no idea was in her backyard.
Under bright fall foliage lives a dark, 8-foot-deep well that a 68-year-old woman was trapped inside of on Trinity Place in Hillsdale late Friday morning.
"Really? I had no clue that there was a well back there," resident Lori Smith told CBS2's Charlie Cooper.
Neither did her neighbor who fell. Police say it's a buried well from the 1940s that has a cement cover. The cover split, one side caving in.
"She's the property owner and she stated that she didn't know about the well herself," Hillsdale Police Sgt. Tom Smith said.
The woman came home from work, walked into her backyard and took a tumble. Wellington Rossi, a construction worker who was at her home, answered her cries for help.
"I was walking around the house and soon I walked by. I heard 'help help' so far away, I got confused a little bit. But I look around, I see the hole and go by the hole and make sure she's alright first. And she said, 'oh I hit my head on the concrete or whatever's down there and I'm alright. She wanted me to take her out and I said, no no, I need to call 911 because they may know the right way to take you out of the hole. I can't do anything," construction worker Wellington Rossi said.
It was too deep for the woman to climb out of without the help of firefighters.
"We had to put a five-point harness onto her, which is a harness that goes around your legs, your back and your shoulders, and we were able to lift her out with a winch and a tripod," Hillsdale Fire Captain Bill Haffler said.
With an elementary school steps away from the home and the well, neighbors say they're worried this could happen to a child.
"Of course it concerns me, with all the kids in the area. We have a lot of kids that come around," Lori Smith said.
Officials hope to put those fears to rest.
"You don't want to leave it open for anybody else, construction workers to fall in. Building department will check it out just to make sure everything's good to go and secure it up the best we can," Sgt. Tom Smith said.
Although police say this could have ended much worse, the homeowner only has minor injuries and was taken to a local hospital to be treated.