Man recovering at QEH after falling into well in St James

A St James man is recovering at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH) after falling several feet into a well this afternoon. 

Acting station officer of the Barbados Fire Service Patrick Edwards said Leston Wilson, of the Garden St James, was fully conscious but nursing multiple injuries, after being rescued from nearly 20 feet down inside a well. 

It is understood that Wilson was working on a private property at Second Avenue, Lower Carlton, St James, when he fell into the well, which is still under construction. 

Edwards said that the fire service received a call around noon about the incident and three appliances with eight officers responded. 

The entire rescue process took about 50 minutes because of significant debris near the structure. 

Wilson was taken into the care of the ambulance personnel and was transported to the QEH.

While noting that the cause of the incident was still under investigation, the senior fire officer expressed his concern about the soundness of well coverings across the island. 

Wilson’s mishap is the latest in a number of similar incidents. In late August another individual also suffered the same fate when she too fell into a well at another St James location. 

“It really concerns the fire service administration that in the last couple years we seem to have an increase of these wells, whether it be the top of the well is collapsing over a period of time or deteriorating that is being checked out, but we are really, really concerned about the frequency of these  events occurring,” Edwards said. (KC)