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Where ‘Baby Jessica’ is now, 39 years after spending 56 hours trapped in a pipe before her rescue
Jessica McClure Morales garnered widespread attention at just 18 months old after becoming the focus of a 60-hour rescue effort on October 14, 1987.
The little girl had been playing with four other toddlers in her aunt’s backyard in Midland, Texas, when she fell into a narrow well.
It took emergency crews 58 hours to reach Jessica, who was trapped approximately 22 feet underground.
They drilled a hole and carefully lowered a ladder into the shaft to reach the baby. They then inserted a microphone and heard Jessica singing 'Winnie the Pooh', confirming she was still alive.
The majority of the rescue was broadcast live by three major U.S. TV networks: ABC, NBC, and CBS.
A made-for-television movie titled Everybody’s Baby: The Rescue of Jessica McClure aired on ABC in 1989.
"Everybody in America became godmothers and godfathers of Jessica while this was going on,” then-president Ronald Reagan said at the time.
The first police officer on the scene, Bobbie Jo "B.J." Hall, spoke about the frightening incident to PEOPLE, revealing that he couldn’t see anything when he first looked down the hole.
"I called the baby’s name three or four times and didn’t hear anything. Finally, I got a cry in response. We didn’t know how deep she was until we lowered a tape hooked to a flashlight into the hole," he continued.
Eventually, a paramedic bravely climbed down the drilled shaft and successfully saved the baby girl.
Despite suffering a cut to her head and requiring the amputation of a toe due to infection, Jessica made a wonderful recovery.
What is 'Baby Jessica' doing now?
Since her rescue, Jessica, who is now 40, has lived a quiet life in the town she grew up in with her husband, Danny, and their two children, Simon and Sheyenne.
She was previously a special education assistant at an elementary school, but now works in Midland at Richards Horticulture.
Back in April, the mom of two made headlines again for a totally different reason. She was arrested and taken into custody after a reported domestic disturbance at her Midland County home.
She was charged with assault causing bodily injury involving family violence, but was later released from the Midland County Detention Center after posting bail.
McClure opened up 30 years later
Back in 2024, Jessica revealed to PEOPLE that she doesn't remember being rescued.
"I learned about it when I was four and watched it on Rescue 911 at my then stepmother’s house. It was overwhelming. I remember crying. She said, 'You do realize that is about you?' My dad said, 'We were waiting until she was a little bit older to tell her,'" she said.
In another interview with the outlet in 2017, she claimed that what happened to her was an "amazing miracle".
"In a way, I guess it happened the way it was supposed to," she said. "I was picked on because of it, but most people are kind. I don’t believe that any of it would’ve happened without God."
Following the ordeal, a trust fund worth $1.2 million was established using public donations, with Danny’s mother among those who contributed.
"She went and scrounged every penny she could find to send it to me," she told the outlet, adding that her husband "remembers sitting there with her as she held him tight, being thankful that she had them and that it wasn’t one of her kids".
She explained that much of the fund was lost during the 2008 recession, although she used some of the money to buy a home.