Three children pulled from river

Three children pulled from river after boating accident Three children were dramatically rescued from a fast flowing river last night after a family boating accident. The trio were in the small fibreglass craft with a man, thought to be their father, when it capsized near to a weir. Two of the children – aged six and ten – were plucked from the water by a local living near the scene shortly after the boat overturned. Around three and half hours later, after a major search, involving police divers and rescue teams in small boats trawling the floodlit river, the third child, believed to be aged only three, was found alive. The father was recovered from the water shortly afterwards. There was no immediate news on his condition. Last night, two of the children were being treated in hospital. At least one of them was in a serious condition. The accident happened on the River Avon in the picturesque village of Barford, near Warwick. Locals said that the river had been busy with families enjoying the weekend’s mild temperatures, but suggested recent rain may have swelled the it and made the currents unusually fast for the time of year. The family is thought to have fallen into the water after their boat, with an outboard motor, went down the weir. The emergency services were called to the scene at about 5.30pm. Two of the children, thought to be a boy and a girl, had been recovered by the time they arrived. One had suffered a cardiac arrest and received CPR treatment at the scene. Rescue crews also launched a major operations, involving boats searching the river and crews scouring the river banks. The road through the village was closed as emergency services concentrated their efforts around a river bridge in the centre. A fire engine shone a bright light onto the river below to assist rescuers. One local said she believed the young family had recently moved to the village. She said: “If it’s who I think it is it’s an absolute tragedy, they only moved here recently and they seemed lovely. “It’s very sad and not something you expect to happen around here. “There has been a lot of rain recently and I suspect the currents were stronger than they appeared. “At least it might act as a warning to other families to be very careful on the river.” Another resident added: “Everybody’s quite devastated really by what’s happened, the village is pulling together. “Everybody’s doing everything they can, it’s amazing to see the emergency services so determined to find these people who are missing. “It’s my understanding that it’s a family who had the accident today. There is a weir, quite a nasty weir, the river level is very high at the moment, the current is very fast, I think they just got to the weir, and the boat went straight over it, and there’s nothing they could have done to stop that happening.” Assistant Chief Fire Officer Jim Onions from Warwickshire Fire and Rescue Service, said: “This has been a terrible incident in Warwickshire this evening. "Warwickshire Fire & Rescue crews have been working in very hazardous white water conditions in the weir in Barford to rescue two casualties. Firefighters have been working from boats and wading in the water to locate the casualties. "We have been working alongside our colleagues at the Police and Ambulance in a joint approach to this incident together with other agencies with boats in a combined effort to deal with what has been a very difficult protracted rescue this evening. Operations will continue through the night”.