Reservoir tragedy youths named

THE two teenagers who drowned in Knott Hill reservoir, Ashton, have been named as Lee Flanagan (17) and Craig Finn (18).

A walker raised the alarm on Monday afternoon after seeing the youths go under water and disappear.

Firefighters, police divers and ambulance crews were called to the reservoir at 4.30pm, but had trouble finding the pair and the bodies were not recovered until after 7pm.

Part of the nature reserve through which the reservoir runs was closed off and the bodies were taken to a nearby farmhouse to await an undertaker.

Swimming is banned at the reservoir and there are signs warning of deep water.

A fire service spokesman said: “We want to warn people about the dangers of swimming in this kind of place. It may look safe, but there are dangers you might not be able to see and there is no supervision.

“In remote places it can take a long time to get help and for that help to arrive.”

Police are not treating the deaths as suspicious but are appealing for anyone who witnessed the incident to come forward.