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JINAN -- The toddler who fell into a 15-meter-deep dry well in East China's Shandong province Monday afternoon was rescued early Tuesday morning.

The boy, two and a half years old, was pulled out of the well at 3:06 am, alive and clear in consciousness. He remains in hospital under observation.

The accident occurred at about 5:30 pm Monday as the boy in Fangdong village in Zhangdian district of Zibo City fell into the unprotected well with a diameter of 30 centimeters, the district government said.

The well is so narrow that rescuers could not go down to bring the boy to the ground. Dozens of excavators and bulldozers were used to dig a big hole near the mouth of the well to reach the boy.

When the well was reduced to around six to seven meters, rescuers managed to pull the child out with the help of underwater camera and a "shaft lifter" specially designed for such situation.

In November 2016, a six-year-old boy in Hebei province died after falling down a 80-meter-deep dry well with a diameter of 30 cm, despite a marathon rescue operation that attracted nationwide attention.