Three boys have died and a fourth is in a critical condition after falling into a frozen lake in Solihull in the West Midlands, with two more children feared missing as rescue services continue the search.
Police said the children pulled from the lake in Babbs Hill on Sunday afternoon had suffered cardiac arrest. They were taken to hospital. Three of them, aged eight, ten and 11, have died, while a six-year-old remains critical.
According to the Daily Mail, “two children – said to be aged under 12 – had been playing on the ice when it cracked beneath them. This prompted their friends to run onto the lake and try and help them only to get into trouble themselves, witnesses said.”
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Walkers in the park “were heard screaming at the group ‘it’s not safe’ and to get off the ice before it gave way”, said the paper.
Sky News said emergency services had not confirmed how many children were involved in the incident, or if any were still missing, “but initial reports suggested up to six children were on the lake”.
Superintendent Richard Harris of West Midlands Police said: “When the fire service arrived at the scene, we were made aware there were up to six people in the water.”
Other reports suggested there were five children playing on the ice when it broke.
It is unclear how long the children were in the water, with specialist rescue teams continuing the search overnight.
This morning The Telegraph reported that the search was no longer a rescue operation but “now a recovery”.
West Midlands Fire Service commander Richard Stanton said: “The specialist medical advice we have been given on the scene, given the temperature of the water, given the age of those who entered the water and the amount of time they have been in there, this would no longer be a search and rescue operation.”
One police officer involved in the search suffered mild hypothermia but is making a “full recovery” after being taken to hospital.
The incident comes as the UK continues to be gripped by a cold snap, with temperatures in some parts of the country plunging to -15C overnight.
