Overview
- Five children climbed a defunct overhead water tank in Siddharthnagar on Saturday to film a social‑media reel when a rusted ladder gave way, sending three to the ground.
- One boy, identified as Siddharth, died from the fall and two others were injured, while two remained stranded on the tank through the night.
- An Indian Air Force Mi‑17 V5 helicopter from Central Air Command winched the two stranded children to safety early Sunday around 5:20–5:30 am in a roughly 15‑minute operation and flew them to Gorakhpur.
- District teams tried through the night to reach the site with NDRF and SDRF support, a hydraulic ladder, and a makeshift road, but heavy rain and swampy terrain halted ground rescue plans.
- Local officials say the tank had been declared unsafe for years and that youths often climbed it for videos, a pattern likely to trigger inquiries into neglected public structures and safety rules for such stunts.