THE mother of tragic schoolgirl Lelaina Hall has spoken of the devastation of losing her child on what should have been a fun family holiday.

Caroline Hall, who lives in Barbourne, said her daughter loved the seaside.

They had been on a weekend trip to Berrow Sands, with her partner Lawrence Boyle and his two children.

"She was really excited about going to the beach," said Mrs Hall, a psychiatric nurse.

"We had been to Weston before and on trips to Devon and Cornwall, but it was our first trip to Berrow."

The group had gone to Berrow beach, near Burnham-on-Sea, Somerset, to end their three-day trip. They had spent the morning at a nearby leisure park before deciding to have a traditional day at the seaside in the afternoon.

Five-year-old Lelaina had skipped ahead towards the water's edge when Mr Boyle tried to catch up with her.

"I shouted to Lelaina to stop but it was so desolate out there she couldn't hear me," he said.

"Initially I was gaining ground because my strides were bigger, but then I started hitting mud.

"At first it was firm underfoot but soon I was up to my knees.

"There was no way I was going to stop moving forward. I was shouting to Lelaina and shouting back at the beach but it felt as though my voice was going nowhere."

Mrs Hall alerted a beach patroller and coastguards rushed to the scene with a mud-sled.

"I couldn't believe it when I saw the sled," she said. "I thought they would have an inflatable boat or something.

"It seemed to take forever to push it just a little way."

After a rescue operation that lasted 90 minutes, both Lelaina and Mr Boyle were airlifted to Weston-super-Mare General Hospital.

But Lelaina, known affectionately as Lainey, died in the intensive care unit that afternoon.

Paper hits

target for

hovercraft

A MAMMOTH fund-raising initiative to launch a life-saving hovercraft has reached its target.

The Western Daily Press newspaper, which is based in Bristol, has collected more than £37,000 in two weeks.

It launched the campaign following the death of schoolgirl Lelaina Hall.

The five-year-old died after becoming trapped on mudflats at Berrow beach, near Burnham-on-Sea, Somerset.

The Association of Search and Rescue Hovercraft has now ordered the lifesaving vehicle from Sweden to make the beach safer.

Donations continue to flood in to the newspaper's office, which will be used to meet the early running costs for the craft and buy further life-saving equipment.

The hovercraft is set to be named after Lelaina, who was a pupil at Oldbury Park Primary School.

Her mother, Caroline, has praised the appeal.

"It doesn't take away the pain, but I'd like to express my gratitude to everyone who has sent money in," she said.

The construction of the hovercraft is due to be completed by early December.

Anyone who wants to make a donation using a credit card can call 0117 934 3434.