A three-year-old toddler has died after he was attacked by a dog in Rochdale, in the Greater Manchester area in England, on Sunday.
Paramedics rushed to the scene at Carr Lane, Milnrow, shortly after 1pm after receiving reports of a young boy being injured.
The toddler was taken to hospital by ambulance but sadly was pronounced dead shortly afterwards.
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No arrests have been made at this stage, and enquiries are ongoing to establish the circumstances, according to police.
Greater Manchester Police have confirmed that a criminal investigation has been launched following the fatal incident. Police were called to the scene by paramedics at 1.15pm on Sunday.
A huge police presence was pictured at the Milnrow home on Sunday afternoon, as well as numerous ambulance vehicles.
An air ambulance also attended the scene, with one local person telling Manchester Evening News that police had been going "backwards and forwards up there all afternoon and evening".
Police have said they suspect the child had succumbed to his injuries after being attacked by the dog in what they described as a 'distressing incident' that will 'rock the local community'.
Detective Superintendent Jamie Daniels of GMP's Public Protection and Serious Crime Division said an investigation was underway into the incident and previous incidents involving dogs at the address.
He said: "This is a tragic, devastating incident and our thoughts are with the family at this horrendous time. We are investigating the incident and previous incidents involving dogs at this address.
"While our enquiries to find out what happened will be thorough and are very much in their infancy, we suspect that this little boy has, sadly, succumbed to injuries received as a result of a dog attack.
"I understand this is an extremely distressing incident for all concerned, and this news will rock the local community.
"I can only assure everyone that we will work relentlessly to establish the full circumstances that led to this tragedy, and while we retain an open mind, this is now being dealt with as a criminal investigation.
"There will be a significant police presence in the area - we will be there to carry out an investigation and address any concerns residents may have."
A separate incident which took place a few months ago saw a grandmother and her dog set upon by a group of three Staffordshire Bull Terriers just down the road from Sunday's attack.
However, there is currently no indication that the two attacks are linked.
The 69-year-old was walking her ten-year-old Westie Max close to the Rochdale Canal in Milnrow when she was set upon.
Two of the dogs started biting the woman, but she managed to wriggle free.
She then hid under a tree to avoid the aggressive hounds during the early morning attack, Manchester Evening News reports.
The vicious dogs grabbed hold of Max, repeatedly sinking their teeth into his neck and leaving him with a several deep wounds.
The attack was only stopped when a man and a woman, thought to be the dogs' owners, appeared and called them off.
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