First picture of ‘little blue-eyed boy’ after horror drowning in UK lake

First picture of ‘little blue-eyed boy’ after horror drowning in UK lakeSeven people have lost their lives in the water during a period of unprecedented hot weather. Share Article Share Article Facebook X LinkedIn Reddit Bluesky Email Copy Link Link copied Bookmark Add us as preferred source Comments By Sarah Barltrop 21:23, Wed, May 27, 2026 Updated: 21:27, Wed, May 27, 2026 A 12 year old boy drowned after swimming with friends (Image: Lancashire Police)The family of a 12-year-old who died after getting into difficulty while swimming in the heatwave have released a heartbreaking tribute. The boy can now be named as Junior Slater who was from Clayton le Woods, Lancashire. window.scriptsToLoad.push({url:'https://live.primis.tech/live/liveView.php?s=118222&vp_content=plembed3a6btjknzwqh&cbuster=%%CACHEBUSTER%%&playerApiId=v118222',triggeredBy:'tcfLoaded',delay:1500,containerId:'ovp-primis',title:"Primis player",beforeLoad:()=>{window.top.addEventListener('primisPlayerInit',e=>{try{if(e.detail&&e.detail.playerApiId==="v118222"){if(window.document.getElementsByClassName('jwplayer')[0]){e.detail.float('disable')}}}catch(e){}})},}) He had been swimming with friends in the River Ribble on Tuesday, May 26, the hottest May day on record. Emergency services were called just after 2pm to a report of a boy getting in difficulty after entering the river at Ribchester, a village in Lancashire. Authorities launched a large-scale search, involving officers from Lancashire Police’s underwater search unit and colleagues from Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service. Colleagues from North-West Ambulance Service provided support. But tragically, his body was recovered from the river around 7.50pm. Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT Get the day's biggest headlines in UK and World news and more Subscribe Invalid emailWe use your sign-up to provide content in ways you've consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our u...