Lucas Dobson: Six-year-old boy missing after falling into river ‘unlikely’ to be found alive, say police as search resumes

‘It is really important that we continue to search for Lucas and continue to do that for the family’

Six-year-old Lucas Dobson went missing after falling into the River Stour in Sandwich, Kent, while on a fishing trip with family on 17 August 2019 (Family handout/PA)

A six-year-old boy who went missing after falling into a river while fishing is “unlikely” to be found alive, police say as the search enters a third day.

Lucas Dobson slipped into the River Stour in Sandwich, Kent, on Saturday afternoon while on a fishing trip with his family.

The youngster’s father and two other adults jumped into the water to rescue him but he was swept away by the strong current.

More than 100 members of the emergency services and about 200 volunteers have been taking part in the search effort to find him.

The “massive operation” is set to resume after it was stopped once darkness arrived at about 10pm on Sunday.

However Superintendent Amanda Tillotson from Kent Police, who is leading the search effort, said it was “unlikely” Lucas would be found alive.

She said: “Obviously as time has gone on now I think it is unlikely, unfortunately.

“But, we will continue to search and obviously I would like to have a positive outcome, I would like to find Lucas, we are getting increasingly concerned with the amount of time that is going on now.

“But it is really important that we continue to search for Lucas and continue to do that for the family, and my heart goes out to them, it really does.”

She said the search team was working hard “to bring a quick resolution and find Lucas as quickly as we can for the family”, adding: “This is an awful, tragic incident.”

Ms Tillotson said Lucas’ family “wish to pass on their absolute gratitude for everybody” and that they are “overwhelmed at the amount of people that have come out to help and search for Lucas”.

Emergency services were called to Richborough Road at about 1.20pm on Saturday, Kent Fire and Rescue Service said.

Lucas’ aunt Maciee Stanford, 18, said the boy’s father jumped into the water after he fell between a jetty and a boat, but “the current was too strong, he had already gone”.

She told the MirrorOnline: “He was with his dad and his dad’s friends along with other children.

“The incident happened because our Lucas was on the jetty and tried to step from there on to the boat, but he fell in between the jetty and the boat.”

Ms Stanford added that the group regularly fish at the spot behind one of the men’s houses while the children play together.

Lucas is said to have been wearing a black and red striped T-shirt with white shorts when he disappeared.

Volunteers were warned about their own safety and told by police to stay away from the water’s edge, work in groups, and make sure they had phones if they continue searching through the night.

Press Association contributed to this report.