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Hey weirdos, I'm Alaina. I'm Ash and this is Morbid. This is Morbid. We are coming at you not
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live from our Pod Lab. >> Yeah. >> But you know where we could be coming to you live from?
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>> Radio City Music Hall. >> [ __ ] >> In New York City. >> In New York City. >> On June 27th, be there or be a big old
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lame-o. >> Yeah, come on. It'll be fun. It's one night only. >> Debbie is going to teach us how to do a
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tap. >> Yeah. >> How to tap. >> do a kick line. >> Yeah, we're going to do a kick line and
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we might even do a little tap tap tap. >> And we got some fun [ __ ] planned. >> We have some fun [ __ ] planned. We're
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working on, you know, figuring a couple things out. We just figured merch out and some of the merch is going to be
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sick and nasty. >> Yeah, it's going to be disgustingly great. >> Yeah, I'm really [ __ ] stoked. So, get
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your tickets for that. Um you don't have that much time left. June 27th is going
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to be here before you know it. >> So, get those tickets. Uh Ticketmaster, only get them there because that's the
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only place where we said, "Hey, those prices sound good." >> Yeah, if it's elsewhere and it looks
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insane, we have nothing to do with that. Period. Promise. >> So yeah, get those tickets. We want to
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see you there. We want to hang. >> We want to see your face. >> to see your face.
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>> of your body. >> I want to see We want to see from your head down to your legs.
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>> Exactly. >> All of the above. >> But not your feet. >> Ew. Go to WikiFeet for that if you want to
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see feet. >> If you want to see feet. >> If you want to see feet. I saw this girl
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say that she paid for like a car with selling feet pics and I was like, "Wow." >> many people say they paid for outrageous
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things. >> I had a friend who sold feet pics. >> That's wild. >> And that's not like I'm saying like, my
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friend >> Yeah, you're like, "Yeah, you're like, no, seriously." >> had a friend. I have my foot is too
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distinguishable because I have a tattoo on it. >> yeah. >> Um and like it's my gran It's like has
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to do with my grandma, so I could never sell feet pics. That'd be so [ __ ] up. >> Yeah, that would be weird as hell.
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>> Yeah, that'd be real That'd be real bad. >> That would be real weird. >> Sorry if we sound congested.
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We are in fact congested. >> It's been kind of a sick ward over here. I don't know if it's like This happens
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sometimes. I feel like the changeover from winter to spring. >> Yeah. >> Sometimes it's like the mix of allergies
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and then I think all the germs are like giving it that that one last like the winter germs are like giving it a last
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go. >> One more punch. >> So everybody in my house got sick. But what was fun about this one
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was we all got sick with different things. >> Yeah. >> Which made it very interesting. I
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wouldn't say fun. It was interesting though. We had puking. We had ear infections. We had pneumonia. We had
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weird colds. >> Yeah. >> We had um random nausea. We had and I just have a sinus thing going on. I
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>> I swear I have a sinus infection. I went to urgent care and they were like, "You
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don't have a sinus infection." I was like, "Cool. Why does it hurt when you touch my face then?
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>> What's this about? >> like, "Ah, leave." But I was like, "Okay." >> Ah, leave.
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>> Yeah, it's been So I think we just, you know, we're feel I'm feeling better today.
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>> I feel much better today. >> But I apologize if I sound a little congested. I know I might Maybe I'm
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alone in this, but whenever I hear someone sound sick, sometimes it can make me feel weird.
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>> It's so funny whenever we have to record and she's like, "Oh, I sound sick." Like
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it's going to be awful. I'm like, "I don't really like to think about that." Like I've definitely listened to pods
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where people Yeah. don't sound A-OK and >> I just always feel bad cuz I'm like, "I
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don't want you to feel gross while listening." >> Don't feel gross while listening.
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>> feel gross. Feel good. Feel okay. >> You know what makes me feel gross? >> What?
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>> The new [ __ ] Siri. >> Yeah. >> I have a bone to pick with her. >> Yeah, you really I don't feel as
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strongly about that. >> It actually shocks me that you don't feel as strongly about this because the
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second I I was I was I was by myself, which is actually weird cuz I feel like I'm always driving with you.
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>> Yeah, cuz it's in the car. That's Siri. >> Yeah, it's the car Siri. The phone Siri
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is fine. But, she's a [ __ ] She's a [ __ ] >> She just doesn't give a [ __ ] >> No, she reads my texts and she puts,
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first of all, weird like em- emphasis on certain words that it doesn't make It's
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like she's putting the wrong em- emphasis on the wrong syllable. And then also, I whenever she's like, "Hey, do
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you want to respond?" Nine out of 10 times the answer is no, I don't want to respond.
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>> She has a personal bone to pick with me about that. She goes, "Okay." >> That's Yeah.
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>> "Okay." >> That honestly, I think that's why I thought she was so funny cuz because
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>> her bitchery? >> No, it just cuz so it happened where I was like I I was going to answer
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something and it was like, "Do you want to respond?" >> And you said, "Absolutely not."
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>> I said, "No, thank you." Cuz I'm always polite. >> Oh, I I always say, "No, thank you."
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>> Yeah, I always say, "Yes, please." I always say say, "No, thank you." >> rise of the robots comes up, I need them
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to know that I was polite. >> Yeah, I don't want to be a bad guy. >> this won't age well for me, but
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>> you know, I want them to know that I said, "Thank you." >> Yeah. >> But uh so I said, "No, thank you." And
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she said, "Okay." And I And it was so jarring and shocking that it made me laugh. So, I think I was just like, "All
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right, girl. You made me laugh." Like that was funny. >> It did not make me laugh. I looked down
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at my radio like who the [ __ ] just spoke out of turn to me. >> so funny cuz you would think this would
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be completely opposite. >> Completely opposite. >> That I would be like, "Who the [ __ ] are
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you talking to?" >> Literally. >> reason, I was like, "Oh, okay. We have a thing, me and you, Siri."
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>> Oh, no. >> Where where you pretend to be like, "Okay." >> Oh, I don't feel like she's pretending.
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I feel like she's >> we're we have a thing. >> No, you don't. >> We have a funny joke between us.
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>> just stop it. You don't. No. She's being rude to you in your own vehicle that you
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pay for. That's See, I won't stand for that. That's why it's a it's a joke. >> I can't stand for that, either. I'm
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trying to figure out how to change that [ __ ] >> think you can. >> I think I don't know. I don't like it. I
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don't like it. Okay. >> How do you guys feel? >> Okay. >> How do you feel about your car Siri?
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>> Yeah, did your car Siri change and you had no say? That's the other thing I didn't like that I didn't have a say in
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it. >> Yeah, I don't I don't love it being It's like that U2 album being dropped on
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everyone's phones. >> Oh, I hated that. >> Everybody was just really upset. >> you couldn't get rid of it either.
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>> get rid of it. >> Um my That's the other thing, like my old Siri and I, she was like an older
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lady. >> I know it. Like she had like older lady vibes. >> She does not have younger vibes.
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>> on so well with older ladies. Like when I was at Disney, I made besties with like three different older ladies.
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>> Drew was like, "What is happening?" >> I like I love older I love old biddies.
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>> I love old biddies and old biddies love me. >> I love old biddies, too. >> I think me and old biddies like get each
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other. >> Yeah. >> When I dressed up as an old biddy, when I dressed up as Miranda Priestly, I
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never felt more myself. >> honestly, you never like you never felt more yourself to everyone else, too.
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>> Yeah. >> Yeah. >> I I'm meant to be old, I think. >> I think so. >> I'm meant to be old.
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>> You're meant to be elderly. >> It just That's what it is. It is what it do be.
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>> Okay. Okay. Okay. >> Well, let's We're going to talk Oh, you know what? Before
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>> more serious for a second? >> Yeah, because before we get into this uh tale harrowing tale of survival.
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>> Oh, we love survival. >> that right up front. Um because it involves a baby. >> A baby.
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>> Uh but survival. Um some crazy true crime news happened >> Yeah. >> that I just could not not mention. Um
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they linked a new victim to Ted [ __ ] Bundy. >> That is shocking. >> shocking, but also not shocking because
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he was so active. >> It's just And think this is why we always say like a cold case is never
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cold. It's never It's never frozen solid because it's This was how This was from 1974.
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>> Wow. >> And they were able to link him to it with DNA. >> That's actually nuts. It was 1974. The
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victim is 17-year-old Laura Ann Ann Amy. She was from Utah. >> 17. >> 17 years old.
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>> That's awful. >> Yeah. That's he was he was a lot more than a lot of people think.
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>> Yeah. >> Uh she went missing on Halloween night. She was leaving a party. I think she was
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just going to like a store. She never made it there and um they do think that he held her for some time alive.
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>> Oh. >> Because she wasn't found until about a month later. She was found dumped on the
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side of the road. She had been bound, beaten. >> Oh. >> he's a horrific monster.
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>> Yeah. >> Um That's it's really sad. >> He Did he like usually hold his victims
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for a period of time? I feel like I don't remember that. >> Uh no, I think a lot of his were uh
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>> Like same he abducted them and killed them the same night, right? >> I think I'm sure I'm sure there were a
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couple >> were variations, yeah. >> Yeah. Um and I think we're going to hear I wouldn't be surprised if we get more.
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I think there was more that he he's wildly prolific. >> Yeah. >> Like wildly. >> You wish there was like a different word
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cuz prolific like I know what you're saying. >> it sound uh >> Prolific sounds like a good thing, but
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in that sense it's not. >> but it's no. >> But there's no other way to say it, you
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know? >> that's just is what it means, but um I guess from that I could see he did
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verbally acknowledge this >> Like >> um this victim like said connected to him. Um
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he did acknowledge it before his execution. I'm not quite sure the the details of it. I'll go further into it
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for sure. I want to take like a deep dive on this. >> Yeah. >> Um but obviously you need solid closure
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cuz him he's a lying sack of [ __ ] >> Of course. >> So like him saying anything you're like
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take that with about a ton of salt. >> Because their brains are so [ __ ] up they want to take quote unquote credit
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for for for killing more people. >> But now DNA has definitively linked him. They were able to find one
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um basically one instance of male DNA that matched him. >> Wow. >> That was found on her body, so.
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>> It makes you like I hope the family feels some sense of I know closure is not really a real thing, but it I hope
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they find something where at least they have answers now. >> they have answers. >> at the same time to find out that your
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loved one was killed by Ted Bundy. I don't I think that would send you for like a whole new loop.
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>> Well, that's the thing. I think they they probably are going through a whole other grieving process now because not
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only was she killed, which you knew she was, you didn't know who, and now to find out that he's one of the most
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infamous serial killers in history. >> And you know just how evil he is. There's a lot to process.
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>> about what he's done to other people and like that must be >> Yeah. >> a whole different thing and honestly, I
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hope they're they're able to stick together and get through it because that's rough.
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>> That really is awful. >> But yeah, I just had to mention that because that was a really big deal.
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>> That is absolutely awful. >> With that, we will get into our case for today, which is it's harrowing
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>> but survivor story. >> a happy ending. >> Okay, good. >> And it really is a story about a
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community coming the [ __ ] together. I will tell you that. >> what case you're telling me today. I
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don't know anything about this. Elena and Mikey >> your time. >> Yes, it's before my time. Elena and
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Mikey were talking about it and they were like, "You don't remember this?" And I was like, "No, guys."
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>> Well, then I was like, "Oh yeah, it was like" and it was honestly, it was 1987,
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so I was only a couple years old. >> Damn. But you remember it like >> But I remember like the cuz it they
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talked about it in the years in the years after that and like you would see the news coverage and all that stuff, so
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I wasn't cognizant of it while it was happening, but I remember seeing it afterwards and being like, "Oh shit."
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>> Yeah, I hadn't heard about this until you guys >> Yeah. >> brought it up. >> We're talking about the the rescue of
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baby Jessica McClure. Uh Uh, a lot of people who were born in the '80s and '70s especially are going
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to be like, "Oh, yep, baby Jessica in the well." Uh, so I know this one. Um, but it's man, it's a harrowing
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story. >> Yeah. >> I actually just saw someone and I was like, "What a weird coincidence cuz I
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decided to do this case." And then I saw someone on TikTok, this like mom who was just sitting there
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explaining the story to her daughter. >> Oh, really? >> And she was telling it in this like
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really great I was like, "Damn, I I'll listen to the whole story when >> A cautionary tale.
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>> And her daughter was like, "This didn't happen. Like that's not real." And she
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was like, "No, it really happened. Like I'm telling you." And it was so funny to
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hear somebody be like, "What? That didn't really happen." It's like, "No, it [ __ ] happened."
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>> "No, it did." That's also so weird when you decide to do a case and then it just
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like >> It pops up on >> you don't say it out loud, that often it comes on your timeline. You're like,
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>> Yeah, hello. >> Cuz I wasn't really talking about this. >> No, we didn't talk about it a ton at
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all. >> that it just came up. >> It makes you feel like life is a simulation. >> does. It's very weird. I like I'm
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I don't like the outside of this simulation, but like I like my homies. >> You're like very insulated um
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simulation you like? >> Yeah, like I like I like you, I like my husband and like my family.
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>> my most of my family. >> My very micro uh, simulation is nice. >> Yeah. >> I don't know about all that.
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>> All the rest of it. I'm like, "Damn, can you simulate something else?" >> Yeah, can we can we aid in that
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simulation somehow? >> If anybody if my simulator is listening. >> Yeah, you know, I always like to say
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things to my FBI agent who tries to scroll away from a specific TikTok. Does that happen to you ever?
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>> Yeah. >> You'll be watching something and then it's like, "Whoop, nope." And you're
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like, "Oh, babe." Sometimes I'm like, "Hey, no, I'm watching that." >> That's happening a lot to me lately.
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A lot lately. And it's also on like the most innocuous videos. >> I'm like, "Let me watch this person
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organize their pantry." >> watching a lady Easter egg Easter I was going to say Easter egg dye.
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>> Yeah. >> I was watching this lady dye Easter eggs with her kids and they were like, "Nope,
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not for you." >> you. >> I was like, "Okay, I I not." >> Uh, all jokes, calm down.
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>> I mean >> Somebody's going to be like, "How dare you?" >> Whatever. >> Um, but let's begin with who, um,
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who the family is, who Jessica's parents >> Okay, okay. >> So, uh, her parents were Chip and Reba
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McEntire. >> Chip and Reba? >> Chip and Reba. >> Immediately sold for this story. Say no
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more. >> And you know, things had never been like super easy for Chip and Reba, but they
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hadn't been like awfully difficult. >> be easy for Chip and Reba. They're wholesome as hell.
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>> They have a very like relatable story, I feel like for a lot of people. >> Okay.
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>> Um, in 1987, they were new parents. And they were barely adults themselves. They
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had both only recently turned 18 years old. >> Okay. >> Uh, they'd met years earlier and started
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dating in high school. >> Oh, high school sweethearts. >> It's the high school sweethearts, and
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Reba had become pregnant in 1986, and they had both dropped out of school. >> I understand.
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>> Chip found work doing manual labor around Midland, Texas, but had been looking for something more reliable that
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would allow him to support his family independently. Since they'd both left school, they'd
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received like a good amount of financial and emotional support from Chip's parents.
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>> Nice. >> Um, who, like many people around town, had done well financially during
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Midland's oil boom in previous decades. >> know I love an oil boom. >> Right. So, Chip later said, "We didn't
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know we were poor. Like, we just we never felt it." >> Yeah. >> Um, with his parents kind of helping out
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with his income, Chip and Reba had been able to afford a small apartment and help and they it helped pay the bills.
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>> Nice. >> Uh, he said money was never an issue. So, it seemed like they knew that like
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they were kind of working hard for everything and that things weren't coming easy, but they were able to pay
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the bills, which is great. >> Yeah, that's what more can you ask for? >> Compared to other people in Midland,
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which had fallen into a recession since the oil bust of the mid-1980s, they were
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doing pretty well, but they were still teenage parents. >> Yeah, that's tough. >> And that was never going to be easy for
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them. >> Babies are [ __ ] expensive. >> Yeah. Chip had always been a good student and he had a lot of promise. He
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was very smart. Um he said, "By the time I got to high school, I kind of found my
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groove and was a little less of a nerd." >> Aw. >> Uh and I kind of liked high school.
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Reba, on the other hand, was a little less enthusiastic about school and being pregnant only made things much more
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difficult. >> sure you're like very self-conscious. >> Yeah. Chip said, "Being pregnant, she
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really was having a rough time." Which I can imagine. >> is hard anyways. I can't imagine having
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to get through it while pregnant. >> No. >> And girls are so mean to each other anyways.
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>> Be nicer to each other, ladies. >> So it was Reba who decided to drop out of school first to focus on the
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pregnancy and, you know, starting to raise a baby. >> Yeah. >> But it wasn't long before Chip himself
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was considering the same option. He said, "I took my GED without even studying and passed."
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>> Holy [ __ ] >> "Then I just went to work. It was the right thing to do." >> Okay, Chip.
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>> "Damn, Chip." Uh once he found work and Jessica, baby Jessica, was born, things
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started to calm down and they settled into a routine. >> I love what a '90s name Jessica is.
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>> Oh, Jessica or Jennifer. >> Yeah. >> Yeah. >> Or Ashley. Or all the same names. And
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Britney. >> Yep. So thanks to Chip's father's uh share of oil royalties, Jessica never
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wanted for anything. >> Oh, good. >> Uh and that generosity was frequently extended to Chip and Reba.
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>> Nice. >> Um Chip later said, "We weren't living paycheck to paycheck." Which is again
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huge. >> What good parents do to help their kids like that. >> kids and their grandkids.
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>> Not everybody goes through that same thing when they find themselves young and pregnant.
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>> Definitely not. >> We've all seen the show in fact. >> Exactly. Then in 1987, tragedy struck
00:16:59
when Chip's older brother Rod died of illness. >> Oh. >> Uh it was in May and around the same
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time, the daycare center where Reba was employed had to close down. >> Oh, [ __ ]
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>> The closure meant that not only was Reba now out of a job, but the parents who
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were using that daycare, they were out of child's care. >> Yeah. >> So, Reba's sister, Jamie Moore, and Reba
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were She had also worked at the daycare. They both were like, "What can we do to
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help people?" Because like all these people just lost their daycare and they have to work.
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>> Right. >> So, they were like, "What can we do to help with this?" So, they agreed to have
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kind of like their own daycare at the house, but basically it was like they will just
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watch these kids. >> Kind of like a makeshift daycare. >> like a makeshift like the two of them.
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>> Nice. >> People could drop the kids off at Jamie's house, the sister, and we'll
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just watch them until these parents can find a better solution. >> Okay, that's really
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selfless. >> That's community right there. >> That's pretty rad. So, to make matters
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worse though, Chip was growing a little frustrated by the lack of consistency in
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his work as a day laborer because it is really inconsistent. >> For months he had been talking to the
00:18:03
owner of the Sportsman's Den, which was a local sporting goods store, and basically this guy was like, "Oh yeah, I
00:18:09
have a job. I'm going to hire you." But he kept kind of like stringing him along.
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>> Yeah. >> And by October, the owner of that place was still dragging his feet, so Chip
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just continued working as a day laborer until more was coming through. On the morning of October 14th, 1987,
00:18:25
Chip was working as part of a painting crew. He was painting a big apartment complex in Midland when he heard the
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news announced that a child had fallen into a well somewhere in West Midland. And rescue workers were trying to get
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her out. >> Oh, [ __ ] >> Chip literally remembers hearing that and thinking those poor people.
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>> Oh. >> And it wasn't until 2 hours later, while Chip was eating his lunch back at the
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office of the painting company, that the wife of the company owner told him, "Chip, I don't know how to tell you
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this. Your daughter fell into a well and a police officer is on the way to pick you up."
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>> Oh my god. >> was like, "I'm sorry, what? That's my daughter?" >> Oh my god. >> Yeah.
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>> Also, just think like this is such a different time period. Like his wife couldn't frantically call him. And poor
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Reba, like her daughter is in a well and she can't get in touch with >> Yeah, like it's not like she can just
00:19:17
call him on the cell phone or something. >> Holy [ __ ] >> Yeah. Horrifying. Now for Reba, the morning of
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October 14th had started like any other day too since the daycare had shut down especially. She arrived early at Jamie's
00:19:33
house with Jessica and began greeting the other parents as they dropped off their children before heading to their
00:19:38
jobs or whatever they needed to do. Around 10:00 a.m. Reba was outside in the backyard watching the children play
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when she heard the phone ring. Since the yard was fenced in and she was still able to see the children from the
00:19:50
kitchen window, she went inside and answered the phone. When Reba came back a few minutes later,
00:19:55
she saw several of the children near the back end of the yard standing around a well in Jamie's yard. Oh no. The well
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had been drilled in the yard about 15 years earlier, but as far as Jamie knew, it hadn't been used in at least 15
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years. And in the weeks and months after this whole thing, Jamie and her husband
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insisted that this well had been capped. >> Oh. >> But it became a little unclear whether
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it had been capped professionally, like a professional came in and actually capped it, or if it was just simply
00:20:25
covered, which is a little different. Yeah, but you know. >> According to Lunsford, and these are
00:20:30
people that will obviously be linked in the show notes, accounts vary on whether the well
00:20:35
opening had been covered with a rock or a flower pot. >> Okay. >> So it might not have been professionally
00:20:41
capped, but >> But it was still capped nonetheless. >> know that. This is all just conjecture.
00:20:46
Um it remains unknown exactly what happened in the couple of minutes that Reba was in the house on the phone. But
00:20:52
in that time, Jessica had wandered over to the well and fallen about 20 ft into the 8-in wide hole in the ground.
00:21:00
>> 8 in what? >> Yeah. At first, Reba called the kids away from the well and then she realized she
00:21:08
didn't see Jessica. Oh my god. Her moment of sheer terror was only exacerbated seconds later when she heard little
00:21:15
cries of Mommy, Mommy from 20 ft down in the ground and realized Jessica was trapped in the well.
00:21:22
>> And how old is she? >> She's like 18 months old. >> Oh my god. >> Reba told the reporter later, "I didn't
00:21:28
know what to do. I just ran in and called the police. They were there within three minute minutes, but it felt
00:21:33
like a lifetime." >> What This story gets hairier. >> I was going to say it already is.
00:21:39
>> Now, the first person to arrive on the scene was Midland police officer B.J. Hall, and when he flashed his light down
00:21:45
the well, it was too dark. He couldn't see anything. And he said he later recalled in like a I think it was a 2025
00:21:51
interview actually. He said, "I called the baby's name three or four times and didn't hear anything. Finally, I got a
00:21:56
cry in response. >> Oh. >> We didn't know how deep she was until we lowered a tape hooked to a flashlight
00:22:02
into the hole." Although it seemed impossible, it turned out that Jessica had somehow managed to
00:22:08
fit into the 8-in pipe and fallen exactly 22 ft down. The pipe actually went down a lot
00:22:15
further than that, but Jessica had come to a stop in a crouching position into a section of the
00:22:21
hall the well that had been eroded from runoff to become between 11 and 14 in. >> Oh.
00:22:28
>> One leg was pinned above her forehead. >> Oh. >> So, that's how she was stopped.
00:22:34
>> Oh my god. >> Below her, the pipe narrowed to 6 in, so it would have been impossible for her
00:22:40
to go further, but >> Yeah, but still she had made it down pretty [ __ ] far. >> down.
00:22:44
>> And her her leg is stuck in that position? >> her head, which is not good for blood
00:22:49
flow. >> No. >> Now, when Officer Hall realized how serious the situation was, he called the
00:22:54
station and asked for a rescue team to be assembled and dispatched to the house.
00:22:58
A short time after that, the team, which had Midland police and fire officers, as
00:23:03
well as utility and state highway workers, arrived at the house followed by a large or actually at this point it
00:23:10
was more like a medium number of local reporters and photographers. They'd all heard the news on the scanner.
00:23:16
Now, Chip McClure remembers arriving at the house a little after 12:30 p.m. Still confused and pretty dazed by the
00:23:23
news. >> Yeah, he's uh probably in shock. >> As far as he knew, his wife and daughter
00:23:27
weren't even supposed to be at Jamie's house that day. So, he was like this just felt like unfathomable that this
00:23:33
was happening. >> the fact they weren't even supposed to be there. >> As soon as he got there, he felt a hand
00:23:37
on his shoulder and heard the deep voice of Midland Police Chief Richard Check, who said, "Don't worry, son. We'll have
00:23:43
her out there out of there before too long." >> Oh. >> Now, by that time, rescue workers had
00:23:48
lowered a light, camera, and microphone into the well, which gave them the ability to not only see and hear
00:23:54
Jessica, but also to see the space where she was stuck. >> Okay. >> Unfortunately, a lot of the camera's
00:24:00
view was obscured by a pile of bamboo leaves that the children had dropped down the well after she fell.
00:24:07
>> Guys. >> It was later explained that and they were young. So, it was later explained
00:24:11
that they had been playing a game of throwing things into the well and then Jessica fell in and they just continued
00:24:18
to throw things in the well until they realized that like, "Oh, she's not coming out."
00:24:22
>> Oh, no. >> were young. Like they didn't understand like, "Oh, she's just going to come
00:24:26
out." >> Like they know. Now, before they could attempt any kind of rescue, emergency workers had a lot
00:24:33
of things to think about here. Thanks to the microphone, they were now able to know that just you know, Jessica
00:24:38
could tell them herself that she was not harmed in any acutely dangerous way. >> like 18 months old, so
00:24:45
>> she's she's saying like, "I'm not in pain." You know, you're like that. "I'm not bleeding." Like that kind of thing.
00:24:51
>> But, the position she's stuck with one leg essentially raised above her head could cause problems with blood flow
00:24:57
depending on how long she's in that well. >> Right. >> The next important thing to consider was
00:25:01
hypothermia. >> Oh. >> Obviously, that's not something you really have to worry about in Texas very
00:25:06
often, but the temperature in the well would have been a lot cooler than that at the surface.
00:25:10
>> Okay. >> So, there was a risk. And in order to test that, they Sergeant Andy and we're all going to have to get
00:25:17
past this name because we're we're adults, okay? >> we? >> Sergeant Andy Glasscock.
00:25:24
>> You have to get >> You need to get past >> need to get it out, everybody. I'm going
00:25:28
to give everybody listening right now a moment. Just get it. We're not adult None of us
00:25:36
are immune to a funny last name. >> Poor Andy. That must have been rough growing up.
00:25:42
>> None of us are immune to a funny last name, and if you are, then you are better than I am.
00:25:46
>> And man. >> Um but okay, so there it is. You got your moment. >> Okay. >> Andy Glasscock is here.
00:25:54
Um and he lowered a plastic thermometer down into the well. And he got a temperature reading of 65°.
00:26:00
>> Okay. >> So, that temperature it was not life-threatening >> Yeah, that's not so bad.
00:26:04
>> but it was going to get colder as the day went on and especially after dark. >> Yeah.
00:26:09
>> But just in in Nobody thought they would be there after dark, but they were like,
00:26:12
"You know what? Which again, they really this seemed like it was handled very well.
00:26:18
>> Like they like >> This They They didn't hesitate on anything, which is like really impressive at this
00:26:24
time. Like >> Especially, it doesn't always happen in cases like this. >> No, and it's like in this So, they they
00:26:29
were like, "You know what? I don't think she's going to be in there after dark. We want to get her the [ __ ] out of there
00:26:34
really fast. But they were like, "We need to do something to just have in place." So, someone placed a call to the
00:26:41
Southwestern Bell Telephone Company office, and a short time later, a large truck arrived with fans that blew low
00:26:48
currents of warm air down the well. >> Oh, that was smart. >> like hot air blasting at her it was just
00:26:53
like >> nice warm air >> just warm air so she would not start shivering and like you know
00:26:59
And Andy said I'm just going to call him Andy. Andy said everything we asked for
00:27:04
we got in minutes. >> Nice. >> It really was the the super fast impromptu attention from the local
00:27:11
community that turned this from a potential tragedy >> Yeah. >> into a national moment of like straight
00:27:18
up unity. Like it's it's when you hear how everyone came together and who just volunteered to do things it's like damn
00:27:27
it almost it especially with the way the world is right now it like it like had me almost
00:27:33
in tears cuz I was like I just want life to be like that again. >> I know. >> Where like people just help each other
00:27:38
out. That's the thing I know there are like if you look hard enough people are there for each other and
00:27:44
people jump in for each other and people do this. >> We're just in a time where more
00:27:48
harrowing terrible >> Yeah. >> examples are being shared. >> And I think like with social media we're
00:27:54
like so bombarded with the worst of people >> Yeah, that we don't always get the best.
00:27:59
>> like like so much so that like we'll post this episode and I'm like I hope everyone's nice.
00:28:05
>> Yeah. >> Because it's like you know what I mean like what you guys usually are you
00:28:08
always got that like one [ __ ] who pops in just to be a dick. But it's like that's what it's like this you can't you
00:28:15
can't look around and not see negativity. >> Yeah and that nastiness and like you
00:28:21
can't always depend on humanity so it's nice to see examples where they could depend on the humanity in everyone.
00:28:27
>> I just want us to be there again where like you're where you're shocked by like
00:28:31
negativity you know what I mean like where you're like what the [ __ ] is this person doing? Where now I feel like it's
00:28:36
just you're like oh well we're going to get some [ __ ] who just has a bad day and wants to take it out on everybody.
00:28:41
>> It's the anonymity of everything. >> So it's like this social media I just feel like I'm I'm hoping I keep seeing
00:28:46
like that pendulum swinging the other way where people are just not putting up with it anymore and seeing the dangers
00:28:51
of it and I'm hoping that keeps swinging. I hope so, too because you're all great. Everybody listening.
00:28:57
>> Uh but yeah, so I this really is one of those things though that you're just like damn. I love a story like that
00:29:03
though. This will This will honestly it'll make you say I wish things were like this, but then it will make you say
00:29:08
but if I look hard enough it is like this. Like there are people like this. So because none of the adults had seen
00:29:15
Jessica fall into the well, they had no idea how she'd managed to get that far down in the first place. But what they
00:29:21
did know was that however she gotten in was definitely not the way they could get her out.
00:29:25
>> Right. >> It was just too far down. After about an hour after B.J. Hall had arrived at the
00:29:31
scene, work crews had attempted to drill a a wider hole in order to reach her. >> Okay.
00:29:36
>> But the vibrations from the drilling had caused her to slip a little further.
00:29:41
So although the pipe beneath her like we said before was too narrow for her to really fall too much deeper,
00:29:48
they were worried that you know any further drilling at the site might have collapsed the well entirely and that
00:29:53
would kill Jessica. >> Yeah, absolutely. >> So based on their early experience with
00:29:57
drilling, it became pretty clear to rescue workers that they were facing a situation way more complicated than what
00:30:03
they had expected. Basically any attempt to drill down into the earth with standard construction
00:30:09
tools could make the situation fatal. >> Wow. >> honest. The first problem was the way
00:30:15
she was positioned. It made it impossible to pull her directly up and out. >> Because of her leg.
00:30:20
>> Because of her leg. She was just wedged in a weird way. Um and the more significant problem though was uh
00:30:25
geology. >> Yeah. >> Essentially directly underneath the pretty soft sandy soil that was above
00:30:32
the water table in the ground, there was a deep layer of limestone bedrock that had developed during an
00:30:39
extremely dry like period that was oh, I don't know roughly a hundred million years earlier.
00:30:45
>> Yeah. >> Uh so that layer of rock had developed and compressed to the point over a
00:30:49
hundred million years that it literally couldn't be penetrated by common drill bits.
00:30:55
>> That makes sense. >> Just couldn't. So not only would the repeated attempts result in an endless
00:31:00
stream of broken and burned out drill bits, but they would cause small tremors in the ground and each one would
00:31:06
destabilize an already really precarious situation in the well. >> Yeah, that's not great. I also just felt
00:31:12
like I was in like geology class again. >> Yeah. >> That's awesome. Bedrock and [ __ ]
00:31:16
>> Now as the day wore on and it became apparent that things were going to be longer than they originally thought, the
00:31:22
rescue team now had new things to think about. >> Okay. >> Using a 40-ft rigging drill, they
00:31:28
determined they could dig a parallel shaft down into the earth right next to the well.
00:31:33
>> Um and then tunnel across and up to access Jessica from below. >> Okay, even that is like wild.
00:31:40
>> Yeah. >> Impressive. >> That would be a difficult job under normal circumstances, but in this case
00:31:45
they're going to have to move agonizingly slow >> to not disturb anything or vibrate the
00:31:51
earth, right? >> So yeah, they couldn't make that happen. So rescuers had to move incredibly slow
00:31:57
drilling about 4 in per hour. >> Oh my god. >> And stopping every few minutes to make
00:32:03
sure everything was stable and that Jessica was still doing okay. >> 4 in per hour.
00:32:09
>> Yeah. At that rate it would take more than 3 days to reach her. Assuming they worked around the clock.
00:32:15
>> How is that even doable? >> It's well no one thought it was going to take that
00:32:20
long, but it would take longer than expected. They were like no, we're going to make this
00:32:24
happen faster than that. >> going to like be starving and like dehydrated? >> Well, definitely dehydrated. You can go
00:32:30
that long without eating, won't feel good, but like >> She's such a little baby.
00:32:34
>> I I So they had solved the issue of hypothermia with the fans from Southwestern Bell, but now that she was
00:32:40
expected to be down in the well for at least a day or more, there were more risks now.
00:32:46
Given the scope of what they were planning to undertake here, it was no longer just a matter of Jessica's
00:32:51
safety. Although some of the men at the scene were experienced in mining or working in
00:32:56
the like small spaces, working in such a small space meant that air was going to
00:33:00
be limited not just for Jessica, but for everybody else. >> Oh. >> So, who would think of that?
00:33:06
>> Yeah, like that who would have thought of that? So, to ensure the proper flow
00:33:09
of oxygen, they lowered air hoses into the well and into the parallel shaft as well, which
00:33:16
connected to a rescue vehicle on the surface that was providing oxygen. >> Wow, that's fascinating.
00:33:21
>> Yeah. You know, by that afternoon, several other experts had been called to the
00:33:25
scene, including several mining experts flown to the scene from Carlsbad on a private jet paid for by Midland Oil.
00:33:33
>> Wow. >> And Dr. Chip Clunic, an emergency room doctor from nearby Midland Memorial
00:33:38
Hospital. >> Oh, [ __ ] >> While the mining experts were kind of helping to come up with the best
00:33:43
strategy to dig the second the second shaft, the parallel one, the doctor was on hand to provide
00:33:49
insight on how to make sure Jessica was going to be okay from the surface. >> Right.
00:33:55
>> Obviously, the most pressing issues were related to, you know, oxygen. We were
00:33:58
talking about food and water. The matter of oxygen was now settled and it was unlikely that Jessica was going to
00:34:04
starve. >> Yeah. >> It wasn't again, not great, but she wasn't going to starve to death. So,
00:34:09
that left hydration because that's the more pressing one. At first, emergency workers planned to send a bottle of
00:34:14
water down the shaft. >> Oh. >> But that plan was called off when Dr. Clunic pointed out, which was very smart
00:34:20
of him to point out, that they had no way of knowing whether she had suffered any internal injuries and that could be
00:34:27
highly exacerbated by consuming food or drink. >> Oh, [ __ ] >> Instead, he suggested they hold off on
00:34:33
sending anything else to Jessica, but added that they would need to reconsider if it went on for very much longer. But
00:34:39
he's trying to He's like, I This is going to make it so much worse. Um and Midland police I know. Midland
00:34:47
police spokesman Jim White told reporters the emergency room doctor at the scene said the baby can last as long
00:34:52
as 36 hours. We hope it doesn't take that long. >> Yeah. >> Now they're on like a time clock, like
00:34:58
big time. By the next morning, Jamie Moore's backyard and front yard, along with the
00:35:04
surrounding neighbors' yards, were just crawling with emergency workers, reporters, onlookers. There were three
00:35:10
major networks, ABC, CBS, and NBC, and their local affiliates, as well as the newly established cable news network
00:35:17
CNN. >> Newly established, wow. >> Yeah, it had only been in operation for 7 years at that point.
00:35:22
>> And they had not found like a foothold really in the television market, which
00:35:26
is wild to think of. >> Yeah, that is. >> Since the, you know, since television news had kind of happened, like four or
00:35:33
what, like four decades before this, viewers had become accustomed to getting their morning news from the local
00:35:38
papers. >> Okay. >> And the evening news came via the evening editions and the local and
00:35:44
national night nightly news. So it was like, you got a little You got little bloops of news. You didn't get
00:35:49
round-the-clock news. >> I remember so vividly like my parents just watching the
00:35:57
nightly news. It was not on We did not have a news station on in our house all day because there wasn't one.
00:36:03
Like it just They sat down, they got a little digest of what was going on in the world, and then that was it.
00:36:09
You weren't bombarded with every single thing that is happening in the world. >> to me because like my whole life I just
00:36:17
remember news was on in the morning, news was on in the afternoon, news was on at night.
00:36:22
>> It is in my personal, this is just my opinion, Yeah, I think it's so This is my
00:36:27
opinion. I think it's so much better for your nervous system. >> too. I don't think we were meant to know
00:36:31
everything all the time. >> I don't want to know everything that's going on. I take news breaks.
00:36:36
>> I need to It's >> If I go on vacation, I take a full break from the news. >> a little digestible little
00:36:44
little appetizer, you know? >> Yeah. >> But, yeah, it was rough. Um so, basically, few people saw the need for
00:36:51
around-the-clock news channel cuz they were like, "No, this is working pretty well. We don't need to know."
00:36:55
Um because as far as most people were concerned at this point at this point in time in the '80s, there couldn't
00:37:00
possibly be that many news stories that required such a high level of ongoing coverage.
00:37:05
>> Wow. >> like, "Why do I need that?" >> That's nuts. >> What the channel needed was an
00:37:09
opportunity to prove its value to viewers. In the story of Baby Jessica, CNN president Ted Turner saw precisely
00:37:17
that. >> Yeah. >> Um who was it the reporter Mark Rone wrote in 2021, "The ongoing developments of a
00:37:24
living, breathing baby trapped helplessly underground would help shape a 24-hour news cycle that people could
00:37:31
connect with at any moment of the day." >> Hey. >> Well, the story was certainly enough to
00:37:36
capture the attention and obviously the sympathies of the entire [ __ ] nation. The fact remained that the rescue
00:37:42
operation itself was so [ __ ] slow that there wasn't even that many updates. It's like
00:37:47
>> going to say >> "We're still trying to get her out of the well. We got 4 more inches into the
00:37:50
ground. Yep, we're we're getting there." Instead, the press focused on the human
00:37:54
story at the center of the >> I'm sure, yeah. >> They talked to family members, neighbors, members of the community who
00:38:00
had pitched in to help. Um Pat Brister, who was one of the neighbors, told the reporter, "You don't get tears as long
00:38:06
as there's hope." >> Yeah, that's nice. >> Um her their their comment underscores
00:38:11
how invested everyone had come in this rescue effort. And like another neighbor, Maxin Sprague, described for
00:38:17
reporters how the whole thing had unfolded. And they said, "My god, Jessica's fallen into a well. And he
00:38:23
said that I can just remember Reba, like my neighbor saying my baby has fallen into a well. And he said she was
00:38:29
hysterical. She was yelling, but I would too. That's her child. When they ran out
00:38:34
of neighbors and family members to talk to, reporters shifted to talking to the rescuers who were not actively trying to
00:38:41
rescue Jessica at the moment. Like the neighbors and onlookers, the rescuers also emphasized that there was this
00:38:47
spirit of hope and community that they had never seen before and that reporters just couldn't get enough of.
00:38:53
>> Yeah. >> Oscar Robinson, who was the owner of a local excavation company, told reporters
00:38:58
how he'd volunteered his equipment as soon as he heard about the emergency. And that was like a big sacrifice for
00:39:04
him because he was losing thousands of dollars >> Yeah. >> by not renting those machines.
00:39:09
>> I'm sure, yeah. >> didn't mind. And when they asked him about it, he said I have grandchildren
00:39:13
of my own. >> Aw. >> And I was like, >> He said that's a baby in that well. >> baby down there.
00:39:18
>> Aw. >> Now, those who didn't have any particular expertise to offer still gathered around the the property to just
00:39:23
stand vigil and show their support. One supporter said I've got a grandson here that's just about twice as old as that
00:39:30
little girl. I can feel for that mama. >> Aw. >> Several people visited the site a bunch
00:39:34
of times throughout the day either to check on the progress or just to show support for the family.
00:39:40
Um Midland resident Hedy Bohannon said, "I've just been praying, praying constantly."
00:39:45
Um she and a friend had stopped by the site twice on the 15th to be with their community and she said I couldn't
00:39:51
imagine it happening to me. Now, it's not difficult to understand why, you know, this would capture
00:39:56
people's attention. It's an emergency rescue of a baby >> Right. >> Right. >> But the response was
00:40:03
a lot greater than anybody expected to be honest. Um Mark Bone said for those miles and miles away from Midland, the
00:40:10
real-time live images made them feel present right there with that child and her parents in this horrific situation.
00:40:17
People felt that by watching they were helping with some viewers even skipping work to watch TV until they knew she was
00:40:23
rescued. It was like a big like no one could take even a second out of their day to not
00:40:29
they were like we need to not see the end of this. Like I need to see her rescued before I can like lay my head
00:40:34
down. Now while the crew of rescuer workers drilled down to reach Jessica, Reba,
00:40:40
Chip, and countless others did their best to just keep her distracted and occupied cuz we couldn't just leave her
00:40:46
in there like with no one talking to her. When Jessica wasn't napping or crying she could be heard singing verses of
00:40:53
Winnie the Pooh to herself. Which makes me want to cry. I just got like a lump in my throat.
00:41:00
>> Cuz she's just like like self self-soothing. >> Or she was just talking to her mom.
00:41:05
>> Which I love Winnie the Pooh so much too. >> Detective Bill Seago told a reporter on
00:41:10
the afternoon of October 15th um she's done a little crying, a little singing. I would say 80% of the time she was
00:41:17
either crying or making some kind of noise we could hear. And then our friend Andy there said when
00:41:22
we weren't calling words of encouragement we tell her to sing for us. Which like
00:41:28
Andy, I'm dying. >> Yeah, sing Winnie the Pooh girl. >> In the early morning hours of October
00:41:34
16th the slow meticulous drilling finally paid off a little. By sunrise the rescue crew managed to dig about 6
00:41:42
ft lower than where Jessica was stuck. Then they dug slightly across up and across
00:41:48
drilling out an 18-in hole into the old well. The achievement came as a surprise to
00:41:53
the worker operating the drill who didn't expect success to be honest. A spokesman Jim White said he was leaning
00:41:59
against not particularly expecting to get through this time and all of a sudden it gave.
00:42:04
>> Nice. >> Now the hole in the wall of the well gave them access to Jessica but it still
00:42:08
didn't get them enough room to get her out. >> Oh, okay. >> The second shaft was only about 14
00:42:13
inches wide and given the position Jessica was stuck in, there wasn't a lot of room for the rescuer to reposition
00:42:19
her. >> Okay. >> So, as it was, there was only one man at the scene who was paramedic Robert
00:42:25
O'Donnell who was slender enough to fit into the hole that led to Jessica. Andy later said, "It's so damn
00:42:32
frustrating when you can hear her down there and you can't do anything about it."
00:42:36
>> Right. >> And he was the one that was trying to get her out of the well, Robert
00:42:40
O'Donnell, and he was able to get down there, he just couldn't shimmy her out. >> Right.
00:42:44
>> Um and that first failure to free Jessica from the well came as just a a wild disappointment to everyone.
00:42:51
>> Uh but Robert O'Donnell took it the hardest at that moment. From the moment rescue workers arrived at the scene days
00:42:58
earlier, at this point, stress and pressure had been building and everyone was just emotionally and physically
00:43:04
exhausted. They knew what it meant if they couldn't get Jessica out. >> Yeah. >> And for O'Donnell, their first failed
00:43:10
attempt was just soul-crushing. He was sitting on the curb and he just broke down sobbing.
00:43:16
>> Oh. >> And he told his wife, "She's right there. I can't get to her." >> imagine that level of
00:43:22
frustration. >> on me and I can't get her." >> Yeah, that's a lot of pressure. >> And that just like shatters my soul for
00:43:28
him because >> baby is right there and she's in pain and her leg is stuck and she hasn't
00:43:34
eaten, like poor little babe and the poor rescuers. >> It's just >> It's an impossible situation.
00:43:40
>> And it's like you can hear like our our our guy Andy being like, I she's right
00:43:44
there. Like we can hear her, we can see her and we just can't get her. >> Right.
00:43:48
>> And then he's saying the same thing, Robert O'Donnell, he's like, "I can literally touch her and I can't get her
00:43:52
out." Like >> Right. >> And if I don't get her out, she's going to die in a well. And her parents are
00:43:56
just going to deal with that. >> And he feels like it's it's somehow like his responsibility even though he's
00:44:02
being very brave going down there in the first place. >> Yeah. >> Now, at the time, several of the
00:44:07
paramedics and doctors at the scene questioned whether it was wise for O'Donnell to get back in the shaft a
00:44:12
second time because he is a he had experienced such an emotional shift. At that point, he was like inconsolable.
00:44:18
>> Yeah. >> But no one was willing to hold him back, either, and he wasn't having it.
00:44:23
>> Okay. >> According to Lance Lundford, those who knew O'Donnell best say this was the
00:44:27
moment that changed his life. He would never be the same person again. Now, it wasn't just O'Donnell who first
00:44:33
felt defeated. Nearly everyone at the scene started to wonder whether hope and effort at this point had been for
00:44:39
absolutely nothing. >> Yeah. >> CNN's Tony Clark said, "As the hours went on, you thought the chances of her
00:44:45
surviving were less and less." From the moment the rescue effort began, everyone seemed super confident that
00:44:51
despite the insanity of this situation and these significant obstacles, they were going to get Jessica out. But by
00:44:58
the third day, confidence was starting to slip, and people were beginning to accept that it was possible that she may
00:45:05
die in that well. >> Oh my god. >> Now, on the evening of October 17th, Robert O'Donnell went back into the
00:45:11
shaft and crawled through the hole that led to Jessica. And this time, he brought several jars
00:45:17
of KY jelly with him, like Vaseline. >> Okay. >> And he reached in with his his arms, and
00:45:23
he started slathering it all over the walls of the well, >> Smart. >> hoping that it would free her from her
00:45:27
position a little better and not have her like scratch against things. >> Right.
00:45:31
>> But, and this is just like I'm I'm so glad that he's such like a good human. Like, he has such a good
00:45:38
human heart cuz like No, I wouldn't have thought of this, either. He said when he
00:45:41
pulled on her foot, her shoe came off in his hand, and he heard Jessica say, "No." And she began kicking her foot at
00:45:48
him, like, "No." >> Oh. And it occurred to him she had no [ __ ] clue what was happening at that
00:45:53
moment. >> Oh my god, and she probably thinks it's like a monster. >> like he she has no idea what is below
00:45:58
her trying to grab her. So, he stopped his grabbing, and he reached up to touch her face so she could feel his human
00:46:04
hand. >> Oh. >> And he called out to her using the family nickname that they used for her,
00:46:09
which was Juicy. >> Juicy >> Juicy Jessica >> Isn't that adorable? >> I'm obsessed.
00:46:14
>> She was so cute. >> god, I have already looked at pictures. The cutest little babe.
00:46:19
>> was saying like using her nickname and like showing her that like he's a human
00:46:23
being like trying to like soothe her. >> trying to help you. >> And finally after pulling for a few
00:46:27
minutes, Jessica slipped through the hole in the side of the well and into Robert O'Donnell's hands.
00:46:33
>> What a good man. >> It like gave me I was like tearing up. >> man. >> Now on the surface, there was a moment
00:46:38
of panic as the microphone went dead and no one could hear Jessica anymore cuz she was just chattering away before.
00:46:44
>> Yeah. >> And Andy remembers thinking in that moment, "Oh my god, she might be dead."
00:46:49
>> Right. >> Then there was this huge surge of like just triumph when O'Donnell emerged from
00:46:55
the shaft and handed Jessica off >> Oh. >> to a paramedic Steve Forbes. After 58
00:47:01
hours in a well, Jessica McClure was finally free. >> 58 hours >> 58 hours >> That is beyond
00:47:10
>> unthinkable. >> A little baby girl, not even What is 18 months? >> That's barely over a year.
00:47:15
>> I was going to say that's not Is that two? Hello? >> No. No, that's not two. 24 is two.
00:47:20
>> Yeah. >> Clearly I'm not a mother. >> Yeah, you would Then you'll start counting in months after that.
00:47:24
>> Exactly. >> Now when the moment finally came, this big cheer erupted from the hundreds of
00:47:29
rescue workers and onlookers who had waited anxiously for this moment. Jessica was carried to a nearby
00:47:34
ambulance where Reba waited, and they were rushed to Midland Memorial Hospital, and her father was close
00:47:39
behind in a police car. And although she had managed to survive, she was not without injury, obviously.
00:47:44
>> leg has been over her head that long. >> And she's lost She lost 15% of her body
00:47:49
fluids, and she was seriously dehydrated. >> Yeah, I knew that was going to happen.
00:47:53
>> were low despite what they were trying to do, and more importantly, because of
00:47:57
the loss of circulation in her leg, she had developed gangrene in her foot. >> Oh, [ __ ]
00:48:02
>> emergency room, doctors were concerned they would need to amputate her leg. >> Oh, no.
00:48:07
>> Before any of that though, she was placed in a hyperbaric chamber where oxygen was forced into her lungs
00:48:12
essentially, and it would be several days before they knew whether or not they were going to be able to have do
00:48:16
surgery. >> That must have been so scary for her, too, because >> Now she's in another chamber.
00:48:21
>> Exactly. >> Yeah. Now outside of Midland, it seemed like the entire world had
00:48:26
stopped to celebrate Jessica's rescue. Across the United States, all the major networks interrupted their regular
00:48:32
broadcast to announce that the girl had made it out of the well alive, >> Aw. >> proving that all the community support
00:48:37
and effort had indeed made a difference. And CBS's Bruce Hall said, "It's events
00:48:43
like this that restore your faith in humanity. >> Yeah. >> You can literally feel the love and
00:48:47
prayers for this little girl." >> Aw. >> Now in the hours after that, regular progress updates about Jessica's
00:48:53
condition were announced as soon as they came in. Um Dr. Carolyn uh Carolyn Rhodes said in
00:48:59
a press conference that evening, "Considering everything Jessica's been through, she's a very spunky little girl
00:49:04
and she's doing great." >> love that. What a queen. >> She also described the extent of
00:49:08
Jessica's injuries. She had dropped from 21 lb to a little over 17. >> Wow. >> She had some scrapes and bruises, and
00:49:15
she said there is a danger that she could lose the right foot. >> Okay. Oh, well, now it's just down to
00:49:20
the foot. >> down to the foot. And she spent more than a month in the hospital where she
00:49:24
was stabilized and received several skin grafts after surgeons amputated just her
00:49:29
little toe on her right foot. >> Okay. >> They were able to do that. >> even think we need a little toe.
00:49:33
>> They were able to save I mean, it's good to have for stabilization, but you know,
00:49:38
>> You have you have foot wounds, you know. >> They were able to save the rest of her
00:49:41
leg though. Her leg was saved, her foot was saved, but just the little toe, which I think she'll take at this point.
00:49:48
>> think you should get a discount on pedicures. That's nine toes, not 10. >> if she does.
00:49:51
>> Yeah, they should be giving her that. >> on your pedicure thing, give her a >> Yeah, give Jessica a discount.
00:49:56
>> Now, the story of baby Jessica is as much about the media and audiences as it
00:50:00
is about this little baby girl trapped in this terrible situation. In the wake of her rescue, Jessica became kind of a
00:50:06
celebrity appearing at local events and on news programs and even taking a trip to the White House to meet then
00:50:13
President George W. Bush in 1989. >> Dubya. >> When Ronald Reagan reflected on the
00:50:18
event, he said, "Everybody in America became godmothers and godfathers of Jessica while this was going on."
00:50:23
>> Yeah. >> Um while the story of baby Jessica had a happy ending, it wasn't always so
00:50:28
positive. >> Oh. >> Uh some conservative politicians used this accident as an opportunity to
00:50:33
attack working mothers. >> Nice. That's awesome. >> pretty great. >> Love to see that.
00:50:37
>> Uh using Jessica's experience as an example of negligence and the many dangers of day cares.
00:50:43
>> Oh, [ __ ] off. >> Which is like don't do that. >> No, her mama was right there.
00:50:47
>> It can happen This kind of [ __ ] can happen in a blink. >> Um but kids >> Kids are
00:50:52
>> get into [ __ ] >> Yeah, so easily. You look away for 1 second, which is everybody has to have
00:50:57
that like >> Exactly. >> not this happen obviously, but have something happen where you're like,
00:51:01
"Fuck." >> Yeah, it was a convergence of events that was just, you know, a tough
00:51:05
situation. >> Yeah. >> Now, back in Midland, resentment grew between some of the rescuers and the
00:51:10
volunteers as well. Basically arguing who who had more of a of a of a family here.
00:51:17
>> and you figured it out. >> Yeah. Pat yourselves >> on the back and go about life.
00:51:21
>> they The two groups eventually formed their own associations and went on to have a pretty public fight over the
00:51:26
television rights to the story. >> What the [ __ ] >> So, like people are always going to be
00:51:31
>> That's the thing. >> I'm like, "Why can't you guys just appear together?" >> Um Rob Robert O'Donnell told the New
00:51:37
York Times, "I hate to see it split the rescuers like this." >> Yeah. >> "But our story is the real story. We
00:51:43
were the major players." >> Okay. >> So, like he's saying like I think he's also saying like this sucks that it's
00:51:48
being split like >> Yeah, I think he's also probably like hey I went down in a hole and saved that
00:51:52
child so like if I was Robert O'Donnell I'd be like you guys can all shut up because it was me.
00:51:56
>> Cuz it was me. Uh but most tragic of all is O'Donnell himself who was very quiet and very
00:52:02
private before the incident. >> Oh. >> His rescue of Jessica thrust him into the spotlight and made him an American
00:52:08
hero like in a blink. >> Um to everyone's surprise Robert embraced his new role as a recognizable
00:52:15
hero and he he was fine with the attention at first. >> Okay. >> But as is generally the case the
00:52:19
spotlight eventually fades and people stopped recognizing him. And to make matters worse he was developing PTSD
00:52:26
>> I mean I'm sure. >> related to the rescue effort and he turned to some stuff to cope. He just
00:52:31
was struggling a little bit. >> lot. >> A few years later he was fired from the Midland fire depart uh fire department
00:52:37
for showing up to work under the influence. >> Oh. >> So he was struggling. >> That's sad.
00:52:42
>> He has a very tragic story. >> Yeah. >> In 1993 he moved in with his parents and
00:52:46
tried to get sober and start a new life in Huntsville. He found a job working with prisoners at Ellis unit and things
00:52:52
started going in the right direction. He was really going like he was moving on up.
00:52:56
>> Yeah. >> Unfortunately though on the night of April 23rd, 1993 which is not long after
00:53:01
the incident >> No. >> he experienced some kind of emotional setback that remains unclear to those
00:53:06
who knew him. And that night after watching the wall-to-wall coverage of the Oklahoma City bombing on the news
00:53:13
>> Oh. >> which >> probably some kind of PTSD. >> He used his father's shotgun to end his
00:53:20
life. >> Oh. >> Which is like really tragic. >> Yeah, that's horrific. >> His brother Ricky said nobody really
00:53:26
knew what he had done with the Jessica rescue down there in Huntsville and they didn't care and he didn't like just
00:53:32
being a regular person again. >> Well cuz he's not just a regular person. It's really tough. I mean
00:53:38
he went through all that emotional [ __ ] during the rescue where >> Where like the failure and then the
00:53:43
triumph and then you're thrust into the spotlight. You're a hero and you're this
00:53:47
and you're that and then you're no one. >> Yeah, that's a lot. >> know like that must be a really tough
00:53:52
emotional and you're dealing with PTSD from the whole thing, which is something that I'm sure a lot of people listening
00:53:58
can relate to. >> Yeah. >> And it's like that's a [ __ ] demon that is really tough to overcome.
00:54:04
>> to get sober is such a feat. >> and then have to be wall-to-wall coverage of this tragedy that's
00:54:10
happening, which again I just don't think we're meant to see wall-to-wall news coverage. I really don't think we
00:54:15
are. >> of people like I think when you gain hope it's such a it's so precarious because you gain hope
00:54:21
and you're like, oh I see like all the good in the world and then one little thing can tear you down.
00:54:25
>> And that's that's why and I'm not meaning for this to be like a PSA of of wall-to-wall 24-hour news cycle.
00:54:31
>> it's it's a theme in the story. >> think it's like it shows you that like we're not meant to see all the horrible
00:54:37
[ __ ] that's happening into the in the world. We're just not meant to absorb all of it all the time.
00:54:42
>> And I know that like and I'm not trying to say like you need to turn a blind eye
00:54:45
and you need to like do all this cuz that please know that that's not what I'm saying. If that's what you take from
00:54:49
this, you took that from this. >> Yeah, and you're wrong. >> And that's I'm saying like when it like
00:54:55
you just said, you get this like bit of hope and then something will slide in something even innocuous or something
00:55:01
that's could be seemingly innocuous to someone else that'll just [ __ ] destroy it all.
00:55:06
>> Right. >> And it's like that's tough. We're only humans. We only have the mind of human
00:55:10
beings. We only have the emotional capacity of human beings and it's okay if it's [ __ ] hard to digest all the
00:55:17
[ __ ] that's coming in all at once. And it's okay to step back a little bit. >> Yeah, and you need it a little
00:55:23
Please know that's why it's so important to have an outlet. >> Yeah. >> Like I right now am in such like I've
00:55:27
been in such a rut and I'm really turning to like creative outlets to try to kind of get out of that rut and I
00:55:33
really do think there's so much importance in that. Like you do have to find something to let yourself go in.
00:55:39
>> Yes. Because [ __ ] is bleak right now. >> Like that's why we're always talking
00:55:43
about like romanticizing little things and like >> you know, the the soft jazz in the
00:55:47
morning, the [ __ ] like just pretending you're the main character while you're on a walk. Like anything
00:55:52
that just makes it a little better. >> I just got I got some clay, so I want to start kind of like sculpting and
00:55:58
>> And that can take you into such a nice regulated place. >> And I love I love like
00:56:06
>> Yeah. >> What do they say? Like idle hands get you the devil's plaything. >> Oh, I don't really love that, but
00:56:11
>> But like don't have idle hands. >> Yeah, I don't want to have idle hands. >> No. Like once
00:56:16
something that like can take your mind away and don't feel shame for needing to take it. A lot that's the other thing
00:56:21
with social media. People will make you feel like if you're not fully absorbing everything 24 hours a day just being
00:56:30
blasted at you like a fire hose, that you're some kind of [ __ ] person if you need a minute to just like step back.
00:56:36
>> We're not meant to. >> I don't think you are. >> not meant to. >> We're and it's okay if you need a minute
00:56:42
to sit there and do some clay and watch something silly or just listen to some nice music.
00:56:48
>> Get away from your phone for a little bit. >> Yeah. >> I just want you to know that cuz I keep
00:56:53
seeing people like just you know >> Well, you just have to think >> and emotionally feeling then it's like
00:56:58
You have to >> You have to think there's never been a time >> No. >> where we've just been like we are truly
00:57:04
glued to these devices. Like they are they are like on our hands 24/7. If they're not in our hands, they're in our
00:57:11
car. Like they're with us 24/7 and you got to put that away for a little bit and like
00:57:16
ground yourself. >> feeling. >> Yeah, you just got to ground yourself every now and again.
00:57:21
>> Consider it your your little moments of of analog. Just >> have some analog moments.
00:57:28
>> Yeah, I love that. >> Analog moments. Just sit outside, sit in the quiet. >> Yeah.
00:57:34
>> Just read a book, do a granny hobby, do a little creative thing. >> a granny hobby.
00:57:40
>> it analog, babe. Take away Put your phone somewhere else. >> Exactly. >> Just don't You don't have to have like
00:57:47
technology going. >> Nope. >> Or if like, you know, like >> like a silly movie or a TV show in the
00:57:52
back, whatever, but like >> like just have your analog moments. And don't And don't apologize for it. Have
00:57:57
them. >> I'm here to tell you right now, you deserve it. You do. >> You deserve it.
00:58:02
>> Everybody needs like 100% me time. >> You deserve it. You're only on this earth for so long. You deserve your
00:58:08
little moments of peace, and don't let anyone tell you that you don't. >> Exactly.
00:58:12
>> is telling you you don't, [ __ ] them. That's what I have to say about that. >> Just kick them in the shin.
00:58:17
>> I've been thinking about it a lot lately. >> Me, too. No, I feel I feel exactly the
00:58:20
same. >> to me. >> Uh it's really heartbreaking though, that >> It is. That's the thing, and that's why
00:58:25
I feel so horrible for Robert O'Donell, cuz he was a hero. >> He was. >> And I think it just It spiraled out of
00:58:32
control, and I feel really bad. But as for Jessica, she has literally zero memory
00:58:39
>> Oh, that's so good. >> event that shaped and profoundly affected her entire life.
00:58:43
>> Yeah, that's so good though. >> She later said, "I learned about it when I was four."
00:58:47
>> Okay. >> And watched it on Rescue 911 at my stepmother's house. >> Awesome. >> And she said, "It was overwhelming. I
00:58:53
remember crying." >> Yeah. >> And she said, I guess her stepmother was like, "You do realize that's about you."
00:59:00
>> Yeah. >> Like that's your story. That's you. You're baby Jessica. >> Right. >> And her dad said, "We were waiting until
00:59:05
she was a little bit older to tell her." >> Yeah. >> And she has since then read a great deal
00:59:10
about the rescue operation. >> be such a mindfuck, because you don't remember that, but you're like, "Oh, I'm
00:59:15
watching me." >> Well, and that's And she said it still feels remote. >> I'm sure.
00:59:19
>> doesn't feel like it's her. And she said, "It didn't affect me the way it affected other people. I lived it, but I
00:59:26
didn't watch it. That's got to be wild. >> Which is so weird. And after the incident, a trust fund was established
00:59:32
in the amount of 1.2 million from donations made by people all around the world.
00:59:37
>> Nice. >> Uh as she grew older, she was which like get it together, people. She was an
00:59:42
occasionally picked on by her classmates. >> For what? >> If you're picking on somebody for
00:59:48
falling in a well when they were 18 and them being rescued, >> How do you even like what's the material
00:59:53
there? >> together. That's what I'd be like, "Oh my god." >> Oh my god, you fell into a well?
00:59:56
>> Oh, just just got >> Well faller. >> didn't die. Like I What? What are you making fun of her for? She's a [ __ ]
01:00:04
>> I just I don't get that. >> She's she's a national treasure at this point. Like Baby Jessica, don't If
01:00:09
you're making fun of Baby Jessica, get out of here. >> "Fuck you. I united Texas."
01:00:12
>> But she has a pretty positive outlook on the whole thing. >> Good. >> She graduated from high school in 2004,
01:00:19
which I said, "Yeah, yeah." >> You said, "Same, girl." >> I said, "Yeah, girl." And the following
01:00:22
year, she married Danny Morales, whom she met through her sister. >> love. >> He was 13 years old and in 1987 and
01:00:29
remembered watching the coverage on television. And he said, "They stopped the whole game to say Baby Jessica had
01:00:35
been rescued. It was pretty cool." >> Oh my god. >> Today Little did he know that was his
01:00:39
wifey for life. And today they have two children who are now old enough to learn
01:00:44
about the incident in school. When she was asked what lessons she hopes her kids take away from the story, she said
01:00:50
to always be humble and to remember that if you look hard enough, there are so many good people in the world.
01:00:56
>> Aw. >> And I think that is such a good >> Perfect place to end. >> like way to look at that cuz like we
01:01:03
were talking about, it's so easy to see the bad. >> Yeah. >> So easy. That is easy.
01:01:07
>> hard enough, >> is being launched at you >> Yeah, like a t-shirt gun. >> Yeah.
01:01:13
>> 24/7 >> Yep. >> And I know that's overwhelming cuz I feel it. >> It is. >> But if you look hard enough and only
01:01:21
tunnel vision your way into some good, you will see it. You will. It's everywhere.
01:01:25
>> Do you know what else is good? >> What? >> I remembered the fun fact this time.
01:01:30
>> Cuz yeah, okay. Sorry. >> I think we've missed the fun fact the last couple times. It's because this is
01:01:36
new and sometimes we're just dinguses. >> we just forgot that we were doing it. >> of the war zone of of viral plague that
01:01:43
has been happening in my house and around us lately, I think we just got a little like overwhelmed and it just did
01:01:49
not occur to me >> occur to me at all. >> Yeah. So thank you for reminding us and
01:01:52
I promise we will not forget again. >> I'm that Well, I'm not going to promise that cuz we might forget again, but
01:01:58
we'll do our best. >> I'm going to put like a little thing up that tells us. >> Oh wow, she's holding true to this.
01:02:02
Listen to this [ __ ] >> I'm not going to let you down again. Well, listeners. >> Such a Capricorn. I'm like, we might let
01:02:07
you down again. >> Like we won't. >> Um this is the best fun fact, so I don't even know if we need like we might just
01:02:12
read this fun fact to you. >> Just over and over. >> The oldest living land animal on Earth
01:02:17
is a 192-year-old tortoise named Jonathan. >> It's the Jonathan. It's the Jonathan.
01:02:24
>> It's the Jonathan. >> A 192-year-old turtle named Jonathan. >> said, "I am Jonathan."
01:02:31
>> So wait, when was he born? >> Damn. >> 2026 minus 192 1834 this [ __ ] was birthed.
01:02:41
>> Holy [ __ ] And he's just still roaming. What's his secret? >> Being a turtle.
01:02:46
>> Jonathan, if you're listening, tell us your secret. >> Wait, literally like why do turtles live
01:02:50
so long? I'm going to Google >> really like to know that cuz I'm like, why are we not taking advantage of this?
01:02:55
Yeah. We take advantage of everything else as humans. Why are we not doing that?
01:02:58
>> low stress. Oh. This is from Google. It says, "Turtles have exceptionally long
01:03:02
lives due to a combination of slow metabolisms, low stress lifestyles, and high cellular resistance to aging, often
01:03:10
referred to as negligible uh senescence." >> Hm. >> They quickly repair DNA, resist cancer,
01:03:16
and protect themselves with hard shells. So it allows them to live for over 100 years with some species showing very few
01:03:23
signs of aging. >> Wow. >> Oh, that's really cool. >> is a part of that because I feel like
01:03:31
that goes along >> That was our message. >> this message so well cuz stress will
01:03:35
[ __ ] kill you. >> Your hobby, your granny hobby can be your hard shell. >> It really should be your hard shell.
01:03:40
>> hard shelling right now. >> Yeah, I'm analoging, I'm hard shelling, I'm tortoising right now.
01:03:45
>> Please leave me alone. >> This is really cool and a research indicates that they quickly kill off
01:03:48
damaged cells. >> Interesting. >> why they don't really end up getting cancer very often.
01:03:54
>> what the You wonder what the what the evolutionary process is there. >> The process is called apoptosis.
01:04:00
>> Oh, yeah. >> So they Yeah, they just resist it. >> But it's like why why do they?
01:04:05
>> I don't know. >> Damn, that's interesting. That is a fun fact. They also take many years to reach
01:04:12
sexual maturity and that's why they live longer. >> Good for them. They're just vibing for a
01:04:15
little while. >> kids for longer. >> kids. >> a They got a long childhood. Maybe
01:04:19
that's it. >> Honestly, I'm 40 and I'm still a kid, so I I really I subscribe to that.
01:04:27
>> I subscribe to it, too. I subscribe to being youthful as long as humanly possible.
01:04:32
>> I love turtles. I love them so much. >> At the Boston Aquarium, there's Myrtle
01:04:36
the Turtle. >> Oh, Myrtle for life. >> Love Myrtle. I wonder how old she is. >> Not as old as Jonathan.
01:04:42
>> Yeah, not as old as Jonathan. >> Wow, what a fun story What a What not a fun story. Hilarious story. I like how
01:04:47
it ended happy. That was the fun part. >> Yeah, I feel we needed it. >> I can't believe that people made fun of
01:04:52
her in school. >> For falling down a well when she was a baby. >> fun of anybody for anything. It's
01:04:58
insane. That's what I mean. Like get it together, people who do that. >> Yeah, if I
01:05:03
I just think sometimes like when I have kids, if I ever find out that they've made fun of somebody
01:05:07
>> Yeah, you're going to want to fight a kid. >> I'm Yeah, I'm going to be upset and
01:05:10
disappointed in myself. No, I would never fight a kid. Jesus Christ, get a get a grip.
01:05:14
>> Yeah, like I know we're just saying it cuz I don't want to be new threat unlocked.
01:05:18
>> I would totally not fight kids. >> Do we fight kids? I'm sure that's already been said.
01:05:21
>> Nah, we don't. We just love turtles. >> No, we don't. No, we don't fight kids.
01:05:26
We love turtles and we and we love being grannies. >> Yeah, we're like Rita and uh
01:05:32
>> Rita and Janet. >> Rita and Janet. >> The grannies. >> The grannies. All right, guys. Well, we
01:05:36
hope that you keep listening. >> And we hope you >> keep weird, but not so weird that you don't age like
01:05:43
a turtle. >> Yeah, get analog with it. >> Yay-o. Have your moments. You deserve it.
01:05:47
>> Hell, yeah. >> Bye, guys. >> Unless you're a [ __ ] >> Unless you're a [ __ ] then [ __ ] you.
01:05:53
Then you don't deserve it. >> No, my slippers suck. >> But if you're listening right now, she's
01:05:57
about to turn off the recorder, so I'm going to keep talking. If you're listening right now, you're beautiful
01:06:00
and lovely. Cuz you stuck it out. Love you. >> Hey.