Cardboard drain cover traps girl

Firefighters drilled through a pavement to free a 10-year-old Liverpool girl trapped in a drain outside her home. Chanelle Edwards fell down the hole as she played in Lavender Way, Walton, yesterday afternoon. She became stuck up to her waist.

When her mother and neighbours failed to haul Chanelle out they called firefighters. The crews used drills to break up the pavement around the grid and remove the cast iron surround. Chanelle, who started to panic during her hour-long ordeal, was eventually lifted to safety.

She suffered cuts and bruises to her side and was treated at the scene by paramedics.
Firefighters said the grid cover was broken some time ago and a piece of cardboard placed over the hole as a temporary measure.

Gary Leith from Merseyside Fire Service’s search and rescue team, said: “It was a small hole but big enough for a small girl to fall down. It was dangerous situation and she was lucky not to escape with more serious injuries. She stayed brave as we worked to help her.”

A neighbour said her daughter was playing with Chanelle when she fell.

She said: “The girls were just outside happily playing in the street as usual when my daughter came knocking on the door in tears saying Chanelle had fallen down the grid. She was quite calm but when we couldn’t get her out she started to get a bit upset. Someone rang 999 and eventually the fire brigade had to come out and drill round the sides of the cover to get her out. Her poor little sides were all scraped.”

Chanelle was today recovering at home.