(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-04-25 11:02

Police and firefighters spent five hours searching for a boy who was thought to have fallen down into a well - but turned up hiding behind the sofa at home.

At about 9:30 on Sunday, police in Yanliang district Xi'an, capital of Shaanxi province, received a call from a resident saying that his eight-year-old son had fallen into a deep well. Police and firefighters surrounded the well, which is 70 cm in diameter and 30 m deep. However, after hours of searching, they failed to find anyone. The parents eventually found the boy hiding at home.

"I made some mistakes and was criticized by my parents. I was upset, so I ran outside to play. When I came back home I found policemen and firefighters were looking for me, so I hid under the sofa because I was afraid," the boy said.

(Xi'an Evening News)