12-year-old girl sadly drowns in Bury river

Underwater search teams were sent to examine parts of the River Irwell where they found her body

Published 28th Jun 2019

A 12-year-old girl has sadly drowned in a river in Bury.

At around 7:55pm on Thursday 27th June 2019, police were called to reports of a concern for the welfare of a young person last seen in the River Irwell close to Dunster Road in Bury.

Emergency services quickly responded and underwater search teams were sent to examine the area.

Sadly, officers discovered the body of a 12-year-old girl.

Specially trained officers are supporting her family.

Detective Inspector Andrew Naismith, of GMP's Bury district, said:

"This is an incredibly tragic incident in which a young girl has lost her life, and my thoughts are with family at this devastating time.

"We have a team of detectives working on this, but there are not believed to be any suspicious circumstances at this time.

"With the warmer weather, it's tempting to go into the water to cool off, but I'd like to remind everyone of the dangers of playing near or swimming in rivers, lakes and reservoirs and would strongly urge against this."