Usa news

Girl, 11, falls into River Thames sparking urgent police search

?George Cracknell Wright 31/03/2025 London, United Kingdom Eleven year old girl falls into Thames A fire boat and a boat from the RNLI search the thames in East London after an eleven year old girl fell into the Thames earlier today. Police were called at around 13:15hrs on Monday, 31 March to reports of an 11-year-old girl who had entered the River Thames near to Barge House Causeway, E16. A large scale response is ongoing, supported by all emergency services, working together to conduct an extensive search in efforts to locate her. Her next of kin have been made aware and are being supported by officers. Photo Credit: George Cracknell Wright
A fire boat and a boat from the RNLI search the Thames in East London (Picture: George Cracknell Wright)

A major rescue operation is underway after an 11-year-old girl fell into the River Thames.

Emergency helicopters and boats have been searching the Thames since she entered the water close to Woolwich Ferry in east London at 1.15pm.

Rescue teams from across London were deployed in the search efforts and drones flew overhead as officers desperately looked for the girl.

A police spokesperson told Metro: ‘Police were called at around 1.15pm on Monday, March 31 to reports of an 11-year-old girl who had entered the River Thames near to Barge House Causeway, E16.

‘A large-scale response is ongoing, supported by all emergency services, working together to conduct an extensive search in efforts to locate her.

The girl fell in shortly after 1pm (Picture: UKNIP)

‘Her next of kin have been made aware and are being supported by officers.’

London Fire Brigade told Metro they were using drones to scour the river.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Joseph Kenny said: ‘Firefighters responded to reports of a person in the River Thames near Lowestoft Mews, Newham.

‘Crews from East Ham, Barking, Ilford and Bexley fire stations were sent to the scene alongside crews from the HM Coastguard, RNLI, London Ambulance Service and the Metropolitan Police Service. 

‘The Brigade also deployed its drone team and fire boat as part of its response, with crews carrying out a systematic search of the area. 

‘The Brigade was first called about the incident at 1.23pm. Search operations for firefighters were concluded at 3.49pm, when responsibility for the incident was left with the police.’

Helicopters scoured the skies from above (Picture: UKNIP)

The London Ambulance Service also sent a team to the Thames but they have now been stood down.

An LAS spokesperson said: ‘We sent resources to the scene, including an ambulance crew, an advanced paramedic, an incident response officer and members of our hazardous area response team (HART).

‘Our crews assisted our emergency services partners at the scene but were later stood down.’

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) told Metro they were requested to launch this afternoon to an incident near Woolwich. The lifeboat was later stood down.

Got a story? Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk. Or you can submit your videos and pictures here.

For more stories like this, check our news page.

Follow Metro.co.uk on Twitter and Facebook for the latest news updates. You can now also get Metro.co.uk articles sent straight to your device. Sign up for our daily push alerts here.

Exit mobile version