Deseret News archives: Baby Jessica rescued from well after 58½ hours

A look back at local, national and world events through Deseret News archives.

On Oct. 16, 1987, 18-month-old Jessica McClure was pulled from an abandoned well in Midland, Texas, after being stuck there for more than two days. The efforts to rescue “Baby Jessica” captured the attention of the nation.

Per reports, on Oct. 14, Jessica slipped into a dry, abandoned water well and set off a rescue effort that moved the nation to tears of joy over the next couple of days.

Tiny Jessica was lodged 19 feet down in a small compartment in the well pipe, her right leg and foot stuck upward at an awkward angle and her forehead pressed against the metal.

Billy Walker of the Midland Fire Department, one of the first on the scene, cut the ends off of a garden hose, attached one end to an oxygen tank and lowered the other down to Jessica. The rescue then began at a furious pace that did not falter until Jessica was saved.

Oilfield roughnecks, many of them out of work because of the oilpatch crash, started drilling a new hole a few feet from the well down to Jessica. Paramedics waited for their chance to reach in to the little girl.

Bystanders told of the early hours of the rescue, when the rescuers listened for a moment, and then shushed all around to listen more closely.

A tiny voice floated up the well. Jessica was singing to herself, a Walt Disney song from the movie “Winnie the Pooh” about the “silly, willy, nillie old bear.”

The rescuers worked in shifts and all pitched in where they could. Local restaurants donated food. Portable toilets appeared.

And a national and worldwide audience kept alert for any news. TV networks showed much of the rescue live, “pulling millions of people into the drama unfolding in west central Texas. On the afternoon of Oct. 16, paramedic Robert O’Donnell carefully took hold of Jessica and eased her gently out of the hole and handed her to paramedic Steve Forbes who carried her to the surface,” read The Associated Press report.

After a month in hospital care, the young girl was healthy enough to go hom. Psychologists said Jessica would have no memory of the ordeal, and a fund was set up at a local bank to pay all medical bills and for psychological counseling. President Ronald Reagan contributed a $1,000 check to the account that kept Jessica financially secure the rest of her life, according to accounts.

McClure is now nearly 40 years old. A documentary on the event, “Beneath Midland: The Baby Jessica Rescue,” was released last month.

Here are some articles of the incident and what has happened since that rescue from Deseret News archives:

“ 1 year later, Jessica unveils monument to her rescue ”

“ Jessica shines in D.C. spotlightT ”

“ Jessica back in spotlight as filming of movie begins ”

“ Firefighter who rescued baby dead ”

“ ‘Baby Jessica’ graduates from Texas high school ”

“ Baby Jessica turns 25, gains access to trust fund ”