Wall collapse
Crews were called to London Road, Clacton, last night (21 October) after reports of two people trapped under a brick wall.
Firefighters worked to release both people, a man and a 12-year old child, from under the bricks.
Although crews were able to release the man, the child sadly died at the scene.
Station Manager Nick Singleton said:
“This is a tragic incident and our thoughts are with everyone who knew the child as well as the wider Clacton community.
“Our firefighters worked incredibly hard to save both casualties and this is never the outcome we want to see. We will be offering further support to all of the firefighters who attended this difficult incident.”
Essex Police issued the following statement:
We were called by colleagues in the fire service just before 7pm on Friday 21 October, for concerns for the welfare of two people following the collapse of a garage wall at a property in St John’s Road, Clacton.
Road closures were in place whilst emergency services dealt with the incident in which the pair were known to each other.
A man, 30s, was rescued from the rubble and sustained an arm injury, but despite the best efforts of paramedics, a 12-year-old boy, sadly, died at the scene.
His death is being treated as non-suspicious and a file will be prepared for the coroner.
Detective Inspector James Hardingham, leading the investigation, said: “My thoughts are with the family and friends of those concerned at this sad time.
“We’re continuing our enquiries to establish the facts leading to the wall collapse.
“If anyone has information that can help us, or anyone who was in St John’s Road just before 7pm last night and saw anything that could help our investigation, should call us.”
The house that the garage was attached to has been declared safe.
If you have any information, CCTV, dash cam or other footage in relation to this incident, then please get in contact with us.
You can let us know by submitting a report on our website or by using our online Live Chat service available Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays) between 10am-9pm.
Visit www.essex.police.uk/digital101 to find out more about our website reporting services.
Alternatively, you can call us on 101.
In an emergency always call 999.
If you would like to make an anonymous report, you can contact independent charity on Twitter at @CrimestoppersUK, by visiting their website or by calling 0800 555 111.
Please quote incident 1121 of 21 October when providing any information to make sure it gets to the right person as quickly as possible.