Mushroom hunters find body in rural Missouri water well

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) — Police are investigating after mushroom hunters discovered a body in a rural, hand-dug water well in south-central Missouri.

The discovery was made Sunday afternoon near the unincorporated community of Long Lane, about 35 miles northeast of Springfield.

The mushroom hunters came upon the well and were using a long limb to stick into the well to determine its depth when "to their surprise, what appeared to be a human body emerged," the Dallas County Sheriff’s Office said in a Facebook post.

Authorities removed the body Monday morning, drained the well and searched the bottom of it for any evidence, officials said. An autopsy was scheduled for Thursday to try to determine a cause of death and the person’s identity.