Fireman drowns in hunt for boy

A FIREMAN died trying to rescue a teenager who had fallen into a lake in Bury. The teenager, believed to be a boy of 15, also died.

The fireman was with colleagues from the Greater Manchester Fire Brigade searching for the teenager, reported missing in the lake at Redisher Wood at 2pm yesterday. However, the fireman got into difficulties and was rescued and taken to Hope Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Underwater search teams continued the hunt for four hours and recovered the body of the teenager about 6pm. A police spokesman said neither the teenager nor the firefighter would be named until relatives had been told.

Greater Manchester Ambulance Service confirmed that a 15-year-old boy had fallen into the water and a 24-year-old fireman had gone in after him and got into difficulties. A spokeswoman added: "The police helicopter was scrambled with one of our paramedics on board." The fireman was winched from the water and attempts were made to revive him on the way to hospital.

In Oxfordshire, police recovered the body of a 14-year-old from a river after a search yesterday afternoon at Wallingford. The boy was swimming with friends when he got into difficulty and disappeared.

Police used a helicopter, dog handlers and a diving team in the search for the boy. They found his body after hours of searching.