Neighborhood mourns British boys who fell through the snow: ‘We will never forget the screams’ | Abroad

More and more testimonies are coming out of the drama that took place in the English town of Solihull on Sunday. Three boys, ages 8, 10 and 11, died after falling into a frozen lake. “They were playing on the ice when one of them fell. His friends tried to save him, but they all fell into the water,” said Tommy Barnett, who lost a friend.

A 6-year-old boy survived the incidentBut she is in critical condition in the hospital.

One of the victims, 10-year-old Jack Johnson, died trying to save the other children. So says his aunt, Charlotte McElmurray. According to her, Jack did not know the boys. “To hear that he died trying to save three boys he didn’t even know is a perfect reflection of who he was. It was amazing,” the aunt said in a Facebook post. This is a nightmare that families can’t wake up from. “The pain is indescribable.”


The boy’s grandfather, among others, tried to save his grandson from the icy water, but to no avail. “I saw him running from his house into the lake, and then I immediately jumped in to help the boys,” says one witness. Hana, a 20-year-old local resident, also heard several people screaming from her apartment. “I will never forget the scream,” she said. “I think it was a relative. Then I heard the emergency teams breaking through the ice. They shouted: We got it, we got it!”

Rescuers were eventually able to get the four boys out of Papps Mill Lake. The children were immediately taken to the hospital, but it was already too late for three of them.

“They can’t celebrate Christmas anymore.”

Local resident Katie O’Driscoll was standing near the lake before the tragedy. “Christmas is about children. That’s why we celebrate. And now the children won’t be able to be there.” The woman and her 5-year-old daughter laid flowers at the scene.

When emergency services arrived on Sunday, they were told six people had ended up in the water. For this reason, the search continued in the lake. “We have to be 100 percent sure that no one else is in the water,” the police said. However, there are no reports of missing persons, apparently.

Downing Street also responded to the drama. This is terrible news for the families and friends of those who died. “The prime minister’s thoughts are with them and of course he thanks the emergency services for continuing their work,” said a spokesman for British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

Flowers for deceased boys.

Flowers for deceased boys. © Getty Images

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