Frantic search launched to find ‘girl, 8,’ who vanished in river
A huge search mission is underway to find a girl who went missing in a river in the west of Scotland.
The coastguard, the fire service and police officers have been out for most of the evening desperately looking for the child who vanished in the River Leven in Balloch, West Dumbartonshire.
Emergency services were alerted at 6.46pm to reports of two people missing in the water.
It is reported that one person was rescued, but police confirmed that they are still looking for a young girl, who is understood to be eight years old.
A helicopter and a large presence of emergency services were seen near the water late into the evening, with Balloch Bridge and Balloch Road sealed off.
A Scottish Fire and Rescue Service spokeswoman said: ‘We were alerted at 6.46pm on Sunday, August 9 to reports of a person in the water in Balloch.
‘Operations control mobilised two appliances and two water rescue units to the scene at Balloch Bridge.
‘Firefighters currently remain on the scene working to assist their emergency service partners.’
In a statement on Twitter, West Dumbartonshire Police urged the public to avoid the area where possible.
The Maritime and Coastguard Agency said it was called just after 7pm to send a helicopter, adding that the search is ongoing.
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