Three children have died after falling through ice on frozen lake in England

They fell into the lake on Sunday in Solihull.

Three children have died after falling into an icy lake in Solihull in England on Sunday, police have confirmed.

In a statement on Monday morning, West Midlands Police said that the boys – aged eight, 10 and 11 – were rushed to hospital after being pulled from the water.

“Sadly, they could not be revived and our thoughts are with their family and friends at this deeply devastating time,” a spokesperson stated.

“We’ll have specialist officers offering them as much support as we can.”

A fourth boy, aged 6, who also fell into the lake remains in critical condition in hospital.

The four children – who are thought to have been playing on the ice in Babbs Mill Park in Kinghurst – were pulled from the water in below-zero temperatures.

Emergency services were notified just after 2.30pm.

They were rushed to hospital and placed on life support, authorities said on Sunday.

Two of the children were taken to Birmingham Heartlands Hospital, while the other two were transported to Birmingham Children’s Hospital.

We are currently at the scene of a serious incident at Babbs Mill Park, Fordbridge Road, #Kingshurst, #Solihull.

A number of people have been pulled from a lake and are being transported to hospital. They are believed to be in a critical condition. pic.twitter.com/lYUB6kZJRK

— West Midlands Police (@WMPolice) December 11, 2022

At a press conference on Sunday evening, police said they had initially been told six children had fallen into the lake.

“Searches of the lake are continuing as we seek to establish exactly what happened and if anyone else fell into the water,” a West Midlands Police spokesperson stated on Monday.

“We understand how distressing this is for the families and the wider community.

“We would ask people to not speculate or share any video footage at this stage.”

Reports on Monday morning suggested search and rescue crews had worked through the night.

However, due to freezing conditions, authorities said on Sunday it would no “longer be a search and rescue” operation.

West Midlands Fire and Rescue Service area commander Richard Stanton stated at the time: “When the fire service arrived at the scene, we were made aware there were up to six people in the water.

“So after rescuing the four children, we have continued the search and rescue operation to confirm whether there were any more in the water.

“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.”

Stanton also stated that, with the freezing conditions, people should stay away from open water and not venture onto ice.

Superintendent Richard Harris, of West Midlands Police, said that officers from all the emergency services went into the water to help with the rescue, with a police officer later being taken to hospital.