A body has been found in the River Ribble in Lancashire as part of the search for a 12-year-old boy who went missing earlier this week. The discovery was made by emergency services on Tuesday evening, bringing a tragic end to a major search operation.

The boy was with friends when he reportedly got into difficulty in the water near Ribchester at approximately 14:00 BST on Tuesday. Police and fire crews, including underwater search teams, were immediately dispatched to the area.

After an extensive search, a body was recovered from the River Ribble at about 19:50 BST. While formal identification has not yet been completed, Lancashire Police stated they believe it to be the body of the missing 12-year-old. The force has indicated that the death is not being treated as suspicious, and a file will be prepared for the coroner.

The family of the boy are currently being supported by specially trained officers. A police spokesperson conveyed their deepest sympathies, saying: "Our thoughts are very much with his loved ones at this extremely distressing time."

One local resident, Ann-Marie Ruddock, who has lived in Ribchester since 1991, described the river as a place where children often swim, noting that many visitors are not from the local area. She added that locals are aware of the river's dangers and tend to avoid it, calling the situation a "nightmare scenario."

The incident occurs during a period of hot weather across much of England and Wales, with heat-health alerts issued. This has led to an increase in people seeking to cool off in open water, unfortunately resulting in a number of tragic incidents.

Earlier this week, three teenagers died in separate open water incidents across West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, and Warwickshire on Bank Holiday Monday. A 15-year-old boy also drowned in a lake near Lincoln on Sunday. In Halifax, a 13-year-old boy was pronounced dead after being pulled from Leadbeater Dam. A teenage girl died after her body was recovered from Kingsbury Water Park in Warwickshire, and in South Yorkshire, a teenage boy's body was recovered from a lake in Rother Valley Country Park.

Emergency services are also currently searching for another teenage boy reported missing in Pickmere Lake in Cheshire, after an alarm was raised shortly before 17:00 BST on Tuesday.