There was a huge emergency services presence outside the London park as locals have been left “taken aback” by the tragedy that saw a mother and her child die in the water
The community have been left in shock after a mother and her child have tragically died after getting into difficulty in water in a London park.
Emergency services have left the scene at Elthorne Park near Ealing.
Police, fire, and paramedic vehicles had all left the scene outside Elthorne park by 10:30pm on Saturday, April 25.
The force thanked emergency crews and members of the public for doing their “very best” in an “incredibly challenging situation”.
Abis, an Uber driver from Ealing, saw the huge emergency response to the accident and the entrance to the park blocked off by police.
“I was driving along Boston Road just outside the park between 6pm and 7pm when I saw lots of blue flashing lights. There were at least two fire engines, two ambulances, and many police vehicles.”
He added, “I was driving a customer who had been walking his dog in the park. He told his wife that what we saw was ‘nothing compared to what was happening inside the park’. So, it was obviously even more serious than it looked.”
Abis was shocked to hear about the accident in the park, which is bordered by the River Brent and the Grand Union Canal.
“You can’t actually get to the river from the park, which is why I was so shocked to hear about it. For somebody to get to the river, they must’ve gone beyond the park boundary.”
He added that people do not usually go swimming in the river or the canal.
“I haven’t heard anything about people swimming in the river before. There’s a Lido nearby in Ruislip so lots of people do their outdoor swimming there. I just can’t understand why someone would go swimming in the river.”
Adis said the community would be “taken aback” by the tragedy.
“Theres lots of families and young children in particular living in the area, so we are very very conscious of that. I’ve got two young kids myself, so we obviously want to know how something like this could happen.”
A spokesperson for the Met said: “Officers are at the scene of an incident in Elthorne Park, Ealing.
“Police were called at 4.29pm following reports of two people in difficulty in the water. Officers attended with the London Ambulance Service and the London Fire Brigade.
“A woman and child were recovered from the water. We are not able to confirm their ages at this stage. Very sadly, despite the best efforts of the emergency services who provided urgent medical care, they were both pronounced dead at the scene.
“The woman and child are believed to be a mother and son. Officers are working to identify their next of kin.”
