Fourteen-year-old girl drowns after falling into Co Antrim river

Rescue services pulled girl out of the water and treated her but she later died

A 14-year-old girl has drowned after falling into a river in Larne, Co Antrim.

Firefighters, police and members of the ambulance service and Coastguard tried to rescue the girl from the River Inver on Tuesday night.

She has been named locally as Gracie Gordon.

The police are not treating her death as suspicious.

READ MORE

Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service (NIFRS) Commander Dermot Rooney told the BBC their specialist rescue team pulled the girl from the river and then used specialist equipment to lift her up a steep embankment.

She was treated at the scene by paramedics, but later died.

Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) councillor Paul Reid praised the emergency services and said they did everything they could to try and save the teenager.

“A dark cloud has descended over the town today.

“You think of her parents, who would have seen her going out as a happy 14-year-old. They were preparing for Christmas, and now they’re preparing for a funeral.

“Your heart goes out to them,” he said. “Our thoughts and prayers are with her family.”

Freya McClements

Freya McClements

Freya McClements is Northern Editor of The Irish Times