Man and dog found dead after fire on a canal boat in Standish

The body of a man and a dog have been discovered following a fire on a canal boat in Greater Manchester on Christmas Day.

In a statement, Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) said three fire engines from Wigan and Hindley fire stations responded to the blaze, along with specialist units from Eccles and Leigh stations.

“At around 3.30am on Thursday 25 December, three fire engines from Wigan and Hindley fire stations, the water incident unit from Eccles fire station and the enhanced rescue unit from Leigh fire station attended a canal boat fire on Crooke Marina, Wigan.

“Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus arrived quickly and used one hose reel, water PPE, throw lines and specialist lighting equipment to extinguish the fire. Crews were in attendance for roughly 13 hours and 15 minutes," a GMFRS spokesperson said.

Formal identification of the man is being carried out by Greater Manchester Police.

A scene is currently in place with an investigation ongoing.

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