Smiling Jessica Teeters Out of Hospital in Cast

MIDLAND, Tex. — A smiling Jessica McClure teetered out of a hospital in a cast Friday, a month after the nation watched determined rescuers pull the toddler from an abandoned well where she had been stuck for 58 1/2 hours.

The 19-month-old girl, who was rescued Oct. 16, rode down a ramp at Midland Memorial Hospital in a toy wagon, then got out and tried out her cast with her parents.

“Thanks to the grace of God and some heroic men, we’ve got our baby back,” said Jessica’s father, Chip McClure, before the family got into a car and drove away.

McClure and his wife, Cissy, said they were looking forward to spending Thanksgiving with the family reunited.

Holds Stuffed Bear

Jessica, holding a Winnie-the-Pooh stuffed bear and wearing a black satin jacket bearing the name and seal of the Midland Police Department, waved to reporters and bystanders as she left.

“Isn’t that cute?” commented Winnie Whitmire of Odessa, among about 30 bystanders. “She really means a lot to us here.”

After Jessica fell 22 feet through an eight-inch opening, volunteers dug through solid rock to reach her. She had been in Midland Memorial ever since, undergoing treatment for various injuries she suffered.

Doctors feared they would have to amputate her right foot, which had become jammed at an awkward angle when she was trapped. But only the little toe was removed, and Dr. Shelton Viney said the girl’s long-term prognosis was excellent.

“She’s a young child, and she ought to be able to walk without any kind of noticeable limp,” he said.

May Need Plastic Surgery

Viney said Jessica will have scars on her thigh, where skin for a graft was taken, as well as on the foot. A scar from a pressure wound on her forehead may require plastic surgery in 10 years or so, he said.

Jessica will wear the walking cast, which was put on Thursday, for two or three weeks. It will be replaced by a walking splint after her skin grafts are evaluated, doctors said.

Hospital President Ray Branson said Jessica’s hospital bills of about $50,000 were paid by donors.

“She’s walking out of here with a zero balance because of the generosity of Midlanders,” Branson said.