Morocco prepares to bury little Rayan, who died trapped in a well

The child’s fate drew global attention after he fell down narrow 32-metre shaft last Tuesday

The parents of Rayan Aourram arrive at the site after rescue teams found the boy's body at the bottom of a well in Morocco on Saturday. AFP

Morocco prepared on Monday to bury “little Rayan”, the five-year-old boy who died after falling into a 32-metre dry well and remaining trapped there for five days.

An emergency operation carried out in an attempt to rescue him captivated the world.

The child’s fate drew global attention and sparked an outpouring of sympathy online.

The funeral is to be held in Rayan's home village of Ighrane, in the Rif mountains of northern Morocco where the tragedy took place, a local official and a relative told AFP.

“The silence is terrible this morning in the village,” the relative said.

On Saturday night, crowds had cheered in joy when rescue workers reached Rayan after a round-the-clock digging operation, clearing away the final handfuls of dirt.

But joy turned to grief as news spread that the rescue was too late and Rayan was dead.

The news was announced by the royal court of the North African nation, after King Mohammed VI called the parents to convey his condolences.

“We thank his majesty the king, the authorities and all those who have helped us,” Rayan’s father Khalid Aourram said. “Praise God, have mercy on the dead.”

Rayan’s body was taken to a military hospital in Rabat, a cousin said, although no report has been given of any postmortem.

The race to rescue Rayan was followed live around the world, and tributes began to pour in as soon as its tragic conclusion was announced.

Mr Aourram said he had been repairing the well close to the family home when his son fell in on Tuesday.

The shaft, just 45 centimetres across, was too narrow for rescuers to reach Rayan directly, and widening it was considered too risky.

Search crews first used five bulldozers to dig vertically to a depth of more than 31 metres, Morocco’s official MAP news agency reported.

Then on Friday they started excavating a horizontal tunnel to reach the trapped boy. Experts in topographical engineering were called upon for help.

Large crowds came to offer their support, singing and praying to encourage the rescuers as they worked.