Woman Freed After 2 Hours in Muddy Hole

Firefighters dramatically rescued a woman who had been stuck in a narrow crevice 20 feet below ground for two hours Sunday night at a construction site west of downtown Los Angeles.

Dozens of onlookers applauded as a woman identified by authorities as Cooke Manzanarel, 22, was pulled to the surface about 9:30 p.m., covered with mud and trembling, but otherwise uninjured, at a car wash in the 4000 block of Beverly Boulevard.

Trapped by Pipe

Manzanarel was wedged between a 4-foot-diameter pipe that extended 20 feet below the surface and the surrounding earth, fire officials said.

The pipe was secured only at ground level, and officials said they were initially concerned that it might move and crush her.

Firefighter George Perez descended into the narrow opening and found the woman in waist-deep water. He placed her in a harness, and rescuers carefully pulled her to the surface.

“I’m not a hero,” Perez said afterward. “I’ve got to finish my shift.”

Looking for Ball

The woman told authorities that she climbed into the hole looking for a ball and became stuck.

She was taken to Hollywood Presbyterian Hospital where she was listed in stable condition.

The rescue unfolded as a television movie depicting the 1987 rescue of a toddler named Jessica McClure from an abandoned well in Texas was being broadcast.