A six-year-old British boy was just two hours into a family holiday in Sri Lanka when he died after falling down a well.

The Daily Mail reports that Martin Nochad was on holiday with his parents and two-year-old sister and had been playing in the garden of his family’s holiday home when the cover of a well gave way and he plunged down the shaft.

His father Mohamed, 36 – a hotel manager from Poole in Dorset who was born in Sri Lanka – climbed down the well to try and save him, but Martin suffered severe head injuries in the 60ft fall.

He was airlifted to hospital in the town of Matela before being transferred to the main hospital in the Sri Lanka's second city, Kandy, but died shortly after arrival.

The family had been visiting Mr Nochad’s father, who is ill. The children had been playing in the garden for a few moments unsupervised, when Mr Nochad said he heard ‘a commotion’.

He saw his son slumped at the bottom of the well – although he looked as though he was standing and in shallow water, Mr Nochad said.

One of the workers in the garden tried to rescue the boy, but there was not enough oxygen at the foot of the well, so Mr Nochad climbed down to rescue Martin. The boy was bleeding but managed to speak, he said.

In hospital, Martin was given MRI scans, but doctors were unable to stop the bleeding and despite blood transfusions, he died.

The family has been left ‘stunned’ by Martin’s death, said Mr Nochad. His son was buried in Sri Lanka shortly after he died on October 5.

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