Doddridge - A 7-year-old boy who fell into an abandoned water well in southwest Arkansas was rescued by a cowboy from a nearby ranch who used a lariat to lift the boy to safety.

Miller County authorities told the Texarkana Gazette that Reed Nations lassoed the boy out of the well Tuesday morning before the rescuers summoned by the boy's grandmother could arrive.

The boy, Jonathan Easter, was helping clear brush by an old house near Doddridge when fell 20 to 30 feet down the well, which had sand walls.

Family members could not get Jonathan out and they called for help at about 8:15 a.m. About five minutes later, the family called back to say the boy was safe and had only a cut on an arm.

Officials say Nations did not want any notoriety.


(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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