Determined firefighters refuse to let dog die deep in Illinois well. How it was saved

Firefighters said they “feared the worst.”

A dog named Rico had fallen into a deep well as he walked to a neighbor’s home in the small community of Prairietown, Illinois. Though Rico survived the plunge, he was left stranded at the bottom of the 40-foot hole.

The fire department reached out for help from the Edwardsville Fire Department and an effort to save the dog began.

“Tonight we had one of those calls that reminds us why we do this,” the Prairietown Fire Department posted on Facebook. “Why when the pager goes off during dinner, bedtime stories with our kids, or family events we go running out the door.”

Working in the dark, the fire departments created a pulley system with a tripod on top of the well and lowered a firefighter down as Rico waited for help.

The Edwardsville Fire Department has a specialized team for technical rescues in confined spaces.

Prairietown’s volunteer firefighters said “this would have been a different story” without the team.

After the firefighter retrieved Rico from the bottom of the well, other firefighters pulled them back to the top to safety.

Rico was “happy to see everyone once he was freed” and greeted immediately by a firefighter with a blanket.

Surprisingly, he didn’t appear to be seriously injured.

Paul Miller, who said he is the dog’s owner, called Rico’s survival without any injuries a “miracle” in a Facebook post.

“A huge thank you to all the rescue workers who got Rico out safe and sound,” Miller said. “This morning he acts like nothing ever happened. Amazing!”

This story was originally published September 21, 2021 at 3:50 PM with the headline "Determined firefighters refuse to let dog die deep in Illinois well. How it was saved."