Young Cuban who rescued man who fell into a well in Pinar del Río: "I had never done anything like this before"

A young Cuban who last Sunday saved the life of a man who fell into a well in Mantua, Pinar del Río, said he had never done anything like it before.

The incident took place in the coastal community of Arroyos de Mantua, where a resident of the town decided to descend into a 25-meter well to clean it. Once down there, the lack of oxygen caused disorientation and loss of consciousness. Five minutes more, and he would have died.

After receiving a distress call, a team of Border Troops and Special Forces from the Ministry of the Interior responded.

Once at the scene, 25-year-old Officer Abel Martínez Fiallo didn't hesitate for a moment to tie a rope around himself and descend into the well.

At the bottom, already out of oxygen and suffering from hypothermia, was Lázaro Iglesias Valdés. The young man tied him by the chest, under the arms, and signaled to his teammates above to bring them up.

The man had gone down to clean the well. At that depth, there is a lack of oxygen and not everyone can go down that far. In fact, during the rescue, I felt that starting at around 10 or 12 meters, the air began to thin. But it's a race against time, it's a race against the clock," he told Juventud Rebelde.

"When we arrived, they provided first aid to the injured person and he was taken to the polyclinic. The people applauded me, his daughter was there, as well as other relatives. I had never done anything like this before, and it turned out well. I managed to save a man," he added.

Martínez Fiallo, married and father of a one year and three month old boy, recounts that "as soon as my mom found out, she called me, proud."

He also underwent medical examinations after leaving the well and assumes his actions naturally.

"I did what I had to do in those circumstances; otherwise, a man, a father, would have died," he expressed.