Three boys aged 11, 10 and eight have died after being pulled from an icy lake in Solihull, West Midlands Police has said.
Emergency services were called to Babbs Mill Park in Solihull at 2.36pm on Sunday.
Members of the public and police officers who were first on the scene waded into the lake to try to rescue the children.
Superintendent Richard Harris, of West Midlands Police, said one of the officers punched through the ice to try and rescue the children.
He said all police who went to the scene entered the water with no regard for their own safety or with any special clothing.
Four children, who had been playing on the ice, were in cardiac arrest when they were rescued after being reached by specialist firefighters.
Two were taken to Heartlands Hospital and two to Birmingham Children’s hospital. They were all said to be in a critical condition on arrival.
Three of the boys have now been pronounced dead, police confirmed on Monday. The fourth boy, aged six, remains in critical condition in hospital.
West Midlands Police said in a statement: “Three boys have tragically died after falling into the lake at Babbs Mill Park in Solihull yesterday afternoon.
“The boys, aged 11, 10 and eight, were rushed to hospital after being pulled from the water.
“Sadly, they could not be revived and our thoughts are with their family and friends at this deeply devastating time. We’ll have specialist officers offering them as much support as we can.
“A fourth boy, aged six, remains in a critical condition in hospital.
“We’ve been working alongside colleagues from the fire and ambulance services as we do all we can to support those involved.
“Searches of the lake are continuing as we seek to establish exactly what happened and if anyone else fell into the water.
“We understand how distressing this is for the families and the wider community.
“We would ask people to not speculate or share any video footage at this stage.”
Supt Harris said the police have had no contact from anyone suggesting there are others missing but would keep searching on Monday to make “100% certain”.
He said families affected by the tragedy in Solihull are “absolutely devastated”.
Describing the rescue efforts he said: “Police officers did go into into the water.
“They were joined by other members of the other emergency services. Some of the officers went in waist-deep.
“One of my officers was trying to punch through the ice to actually rescue the children themselves. That officer as a result of that had some mild hypothermia yesterday. I’m pleased to say that he’s now been released from hospital and he’s absolutely fine.”
Downing Street said the deaths of three children were tragic but praised the response of the emergency services.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “Obviously this is devastating news for the family and friends of those who have died, this is a tragic incident.
“The Prime Minister’s thoughts are with them and obviously he passes his thanks to the emergency services who are continuing to work and provide support.”
