Quarry Teenager's Two Uncles Also Drowned

The Strabane teenager whose body was pulled from a water-filled quarry yesterday was the third member of his family to die by drowning.

Two uncles of 17-year-old Rhys Jack both died in drowning incidents that mirror the Holy Cross pupil’s death.

His mother’s brother died at a young age in the River Mourne and his father’s uncle drowned alongside two friends on the River Finn.

Rhys was on a makeshift raft at the flooded, disused quarry in the Backtown area of Strabane on Monday, enjoying good weather with three friends, when he went into the water and did not come back up.

Another teenager who was with Rhys said he wanted to get to shore and told his friends he was able to swim.

He recounted how the teenagers took to the water to try and save him but eventually had to alert the police.

More than 150 people lined the banks of the water on Monday night as the news spread.

Rhys’s uncle Darren McGarrigle described him as a "loveable rogue".

Staff at Holy Cross College in Strabane, where Rhys attended, are understood to be making special arrangements for friends of the teenager who have exams over the next month.

(NE)