Search continues for missing 14-year-old boy last seen swimming in Mersey

A search is underway for a 14-year-old boy who went missing after swimming in the River Mersey last night.

Emergency services including a coastguard helicopter, police cars, ambulances and fire engines descended on Crosby Beach yesterday evening. Merseyside Police confirmed the force was at the scene.

The force said the 14-year-old boy had gone swimming in the Mersey with his friends, close to the radar tower on the beach. His friends had come out of the river, but they parted from him, and he has not been seen since.

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The road to the radar tower was closed and the force asked people to avoid the area while emergency services, including the coastguard and North West Ambulance Service, continued to search for the missing boy. Sefton Council reiterated this message.

This morning the coastguard and police remained at the scene searching for the boy. Coastguards watched the coast with binoculars, while the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) was also out. Meanwhile the RNLI lifeboat was traversing the coast to the north at a slow pace.

The focus of the search seemed to be on the area near the tower. The passers-by on the beach were removed from the area by the police. No activity could be seen north of the tower.

The Coast Guard has now left the scene. When contacted by the ECHO this morning, a spokesman for Merseyside Police said the force had no update to share on the incident.

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