Boy, 12, drowns in canal tragedy

A 12-year-old boy has died after falling 20ft into a canal lock at a Midland beauty spot in front of shocked onlookers.

The youngster was riding his bike over a narrow bridge at Stourport canal basin when he lost his balance.

He struggled in the water before losing consciousness and going under the surface.

Fire crews from Kidderminster and Stourport, along with the Severn Area Rescue Association, spent half-an-hour searching for him before lockkeeper Graham Mitchell, aged 57, pulled him out. The lock was drained of water to help the search.

The boy, who lives in the Hartlebury area and has not been named, was out riding with a friend when the tragedy happened just before noon yesterday.