Man Rescued After Falling Into Abandoned Well on Raymond Island

Raymond Island in Victoria's east, a place only accessible by ferry, is known as a community where wildlife rescues are a frequent part of life.

But for Bruce and Elizabeth Miller, assisting an injured kangaroo on Monday evening took a dramatic turn.

The Raymond Island teacher was walking just behind his wife along what they believed was an animal track when he suddenly plummeted into darkness.

"As I was walking down the trail, I just fell through the earth," he said.

"You've got this feeling of helplessness.

Mr Miller landed in water about three metres below ground level inside what would later be identified as an old, abandoned well hidden beneath the surface.

"I went underwater … I don't think I touched the ground, but I did resurface. [But] what's in this hole with me? How far down am I?" he said.

"I tried climbing out but there was nothing solid to hold on to."

Where did Bruce go?

From above, his wife said she initially did not understand what had happened.

"He just disappeared on me and I'm like, 'Where are you?' and he's like, 'Don't panic, I'm down here,'" Ms Miller said.

She said the ground around the opening was soft and unstable, and she could barely see her husband in the abyss below.

The couple, experienced wildlife rescuers on Raymond Island, quickly shifted from surprise into action.

Ms Miller said she threw down a strap that her husband tied himself onto and immediately called for help from friends in the tight-knit island community.

"My job really was to coordinate all the emergency services that came along," she said.

Multi-agency rescue

Ms Miller said that, despite the unfolding emergency, they both tried to stay as calm as possible.

"The biggest thing for us was we didn't panic," she said.

Within minutes, friends arrived with ropes and equipment before multiple emergency service workers were called to the scene.

Raymond Island only has one Country Fire Authority (CFA) truck on site, meaning the rest of the emergency service units, including police, Fire Rescue Victoria and Ambulance Victoria all arrived by boat.

From there, crews worked in difficult conditions due to the unstable ground.

CFA District 11 commander Tony Ford said the opening was believed to be a well, possibly many years old.

"The walls of the hole were beginning to crumble, so crews were concerned that getting too close to the edge could cause more soil to collapse onto Bruce or cause a rescuer to fall in," Mr Ford said.

Ms Miller said the scene quickly became overwhelming as floodlights lit up the bushland.

Crews used a carefully coordinated system of ropes and ladders to bring Mr Miller safely back to the surface within an hour.

He was assessed by paramedics and cleared to return home.

Lucky escape

Mr Miller said his thoughts in the moments after the fall were not only about survival, but about what mattered most to him.

"The only thing I could think of is if one little thing went differently, it could have been so much worse," he said.

"Just thankful for a lot of lucky circumstances and then all the professionals that came to help.

Ms Miller said the experience reinforced how quickly situations could change, even during routine wildlife rescue work, and how vital it was to stay alert in unpredictable terrain.

The pair also acknowledged the efforts of fellow rescuers Carole Jones, Shelley Robinson and Allan Patterson, who assisted during the emergency.

Parks Victoria has investigated the site and the hole has been fenced off.

Despite the ordeal, the Millers said they remained committed to wildlife rescue work on Raymond Island, a community that rallied immediately around them when they needed it most.