Teenagers in heroic canal rescue
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Inland Waterways
Article Date: 2007-02-09
View Count: 1041
The Leeds-Liverpool canal was the sight of a dramatic rescue yesterday as the cold winter weather caused treacherous conditions on the country's inland waterways.
A 16-year-old girl leapt into the ice-covered canal in Nelson, east Lancashire after her two drowning dogs, reports the Burnley Express.
She was heroically saved from the freezing water by Gary Morton, also 16, who happened to be walking past at the time.
"I grabbed onto her, pulled her onto the canal bank and laid her on her side – she was conscious and still speaking," he told the local paper. "I ran home and used my mum's phone to call the fire services."
Fire station manager Nick Clough said: "She's been a very lucky young lady in the fact that someone was around to alert us – once you're in the water it's so cold that there's no chance of getting yourself out.
"We just don't know what would have happened if we hadn't been called as quickly as we were."
The two dogs managed to get themselves out of the water and were taken to a local vet to recover.
Snowy weather also caused havoc on the roads yesterday as drivers were advised to travel only if it was absolutely necessary and five airports were forced to close their runways for short periods.
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