Children who fell into icy lake near Birmingham remain criticalon December 12, 2022 at 8:45 am

Four children who were rescued from an icy lake near Birmingham remain in a critical condition in hospital.

The children were in cardiac arrest when they were helped from the water. It is thought they had been playing on ice in Babbs Mill Park, Kingshurst.

Search operations continued in the lake to determine if there was anyone else in the water. Emergency crews were told six people had been seen on the ice.

Police have not confirmed they are looking for anyone else at this stage.

Emergency services were sent to the scene at about 14:30 GMT on Sunday.

West Midlands fire chief Richard Stanton said “this would no longer be a search and rescue operation”, and cited the coldness of the water, the age of those who had entered and the time they may have been in there.

He said crews had been “made aware there were up to six people in the water” when firefighters arrived.

The ambulance service said during a news conference on Sunday evening its resources had been stood down.

Kamren Whyte, from New Testament Church of God, in Kinghurst, handed out warm drinks to emergency service workers.

“If it was anybody going into the water it would have been a tragedy, but especially children,” Mr Whyte said.

He added he had been in shock when he had first heard the news, thinking about the “sheer temperature of the water”.

Speaking at Sunday evening’s news conference, Supt Richard Harris, of West Midlands Police, said his officers would “hold the scene tonight”, but he could not confirm they were looking for anyone else at this stage.

He said one officer had suffered “mild hypothermia” during the rescue operation, but was making a recovery after being taken to hospital as a precaution.

By the time firefighters arrived at the lake on Sunday afternoon, police office officers and members of the public were involved in rescue attempts, Supt Harris said.

Temperatures of 1C (34F) were reported in the area at the time. They plummeted to about -3C (26F) overnight.

The UK is expected to continue experiencing a cold spell – with snow, ice and freezing fog expected for days, according to forecasts.

The four children received immediate treatment on site, said Cameron McVittie, a tactical commander with the West Midlands Ambulance Service.

Mr Stanton added fire crews “entered the water, swam to the first child and our specialist-trained firefighters, including technical rescue, rescued three further children”.

They were then treated by advanced care teams, Mr McVittie said – two going to Birmingham Children’s Hospital and two to Heartlands Hospital.

Mr McVittie added: “There are no updates. They were all in critical condition when they arrived in hospital.”

The officials declined to provide any further information about the children involved in the incident.

Concerned members of the community had gathered near the scene in a residential area, as emergency services worked at the lake.

A drone was also spotted flying over the water.

Babbs Mill Park is a local nature reserve near Solihull with a lake, river, wildflower grasslands and woodlands.

West Midlands Mayor Andy Street tweeted to say it had been a “deeply concerning incident”, adding: “I know we’ll all be praying for the children to pull through”.

The Met Office warned of the dangers posed by ice during the UK’s cold spell.

A spokesperson said: “With temperatures set to struggle to get much above freezing over the coming days across much of the country, stretches of water such as rivers and ponds are at risk of freezing.

“While frozen rivers and ponds can be fascinating, they can be dangerous and a hazard to life.”

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