By Rédaction Africanews and Agencies
Mourners bade farewell to ten-year-old Ayoub Hadaf on Sunday, one day after his body was recovered from a well where he’d been trapped for four days.
Draped in the Algerian flag, the coffin of 10-year-old Ayoub Hadaf was carried by civil protection workers during his funeral on Sunday.
The young boy died after becoming trapped in a well.
“On the day of the accident, he was walking with his brother, who was just ahead of him,” Ayoub’s uncle, Abdelhak Hadef, said on Sunday. “As he walked over the well, which had been covered with earth, he stopped on top of it. The ground gave way beneath his feet.”
Emergency crews in Ghassoul, in Algeria’s El Bayadh province, spent four days trying to rescue him. But when they reached his body, he was already dead.
Locals say his death should be used to raise awareness.
“Today, we have gathered for the funeral of our dear Ayoub, who fell into this well. This is no trivial matter. We must not, under any circumstances, take this lightly,” said Saad Mouaness, Ayoub’s neighbour.
“Anyone who owns a well must cover it! And even if we do not know the owner, let us help one another and get in touch with one another to make these openings safe.”
The well where Ayoub was trapped was 80 metres deep and just 40 centimetres in diameter, complicating efforts to extricate him.
Rescue workers said the boy was “trapped beneath a thick layer of soil.” Emergency crews were forced to use heavy machinery to dig a large pit alongside the well in an attempt to reach him.
The operation drew widespread attention across the country and social media was awash with calls to save the young boy.