A schoolgirl who died after getting into difficulty in water after a village's annual family fun day was ‘beautiful’, ‘bubbly and ‘polite', her heartbroken family have said. The body of Abbie Walton, 15, was found in the water a number of hours after rescue teams began their search the River Etherow, in Broadbottom, Greater Manchester.
She was pronounced dead at the scene on Wednesday, June 14, hours after villagers had taken part in an annual duck race event, which was followed by a barbecue. Speaking for the first time since her death, her family said she was looking forward to her school prom.
Her eldest sister Kylie said: “Abbie was always smiling and rarely upset. She’d get so excited to see us and come bouncing through the door to give me and my sons a massive cuddle. She was very close with our family, especially our mum.
“Abbie was such a bubbly and polite girl. Truly beautiful inside and out. She was always dancing and making videos for TikTok.”
Abbie’s older sisters Claire and Nicola jointly recall: “Abbie would race around in flip flops to see us and say ‘hey girl’ that was her favourite catchphrase. She lit up the room when she walked in and whenever a room went quiet, she would let out a random noise and make everyone laugh.
“Abbie was loud, sassy, and always dancing. She loved TikTok and to look her best with fake tan and butterfly lashes.”
In an emotional statement released by police, her older brother Daniel added: “Abbie was so lively; she was definitely the ‘personality’ in the family. We used to wind each other up all the time. She was a funny person and didn’t care what anyone thought about her.
“She was close with our family and popular in school. Abbie was looking forward to prom more than anything. That’s all she would talk about.”
Greater Manchester Police said they were called to reports of a person getting into difficulty in the water at around 7.50pm. Emergency services rushed to the area, but police confirmed the grim discovery just after 2am the following morning.
The village's annual Duck Race fundraiser involves purchasing plastic ducks and releasing them on the water to see which completes a course first. The event was over before the tragedy.
