A MISSING schoolboy had to be dragged to safety after being spotted in the sea.
The alarm was raised after the 11-year-old truant was seen paddling on his own close to Central Pier at 9.20am yesterday.
Police were called to the scene and the boy was hauled to safety before being returned to his home.
Jen Newton, 29, was walking along the beach when she saw the boy wandering through the waves about 15 metres from the beach.
Jen, of Browning Avenue, Lytham, alerted the police and talked to the boy while awaiting their arrival.
She said: “I saw someone in the water and they were quite far out so it wasn’t normal.
“I just tried to talk to him so he didn’t go out to sea.”
Jen, who is the general manager at Sealife Centre Blackpool, managed to keep the youngster from walking further from the shore with tales of the centre’s inhabitants.
She said: “We thought calling the police was the right thing to do and wanted to makes sure he didn’t go out to sea.
“He was talking about the tides and fish so I started talking to him about the sharks we have.”
The boy continued walking in the sea parallel to the beach and was close to South Pier by the time he was picked up by police officers.
A spokesman for Lancashire Police said: “We were looking for a boy who had left home this morning and was reported missing.
“Our officers spotted him paddling in the sea and took him into our care before returning him home.”
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