AN East Lancashire man has told how he tried to help after a teenager plummeted 100ft from a rollercoaster.

Pete Hawkins, of Park Lane, Oswaldtwistle, told how he and other stunned bystanders desperately tried to help 16-year-old Hayley Williams after she apparently fell out of the Hydro ride at the Oakwood theme park, in west Wales, last week.

The nursing assistant was on holiday with his family on a day out and had been due to go on the ride next.

Mr Hawkins - who is also the branch secretary for Unison at Calderstones NHS Trust - and his family, including two daughters, were due to travel back from Wales at the weekend but stayed in the area until yesterday to talk to police and health and safety officers.

They are currently trying to gather information from hundreds of holidaymakers at the theme park to try and piece together what happened.

Mr Hawkins said: "We'd gone for a day out and because the weather wasn't great there had hardly been a queue for anything. We were next in the queue for the ride so didn't actually see the girl fall. But my wife, who wasn't going on it, did.

"There were several of us who tried to help her before the paramedics arrived but there was nothing we could do. It's the last thing in the world you expect to happen. The whole incident has been horrendous."

Hayley, from Pontypool, fell from the top of the Hydro ride on Thursday afternoon at the park, near the south coast resort of Tenby. Shortly afterwards, she was flown by air ambulance to Withybush Hospital in Haverfordwest, where she was pronounced dead.

A 10-year-old, Martin Rothwell from Swansea, who was sitting in front of Hayley, was also treated for head injuries after he was hit as she fell.

The theme park has described the Hydro as Europe's fastest and wettest water coaster. The ride is now closed while the rest of the theme park remains open.

Oakwood operations manager, John Doona, said on Friday: "Our thoughts are with the family and friends of those involved. A joint investigation is in progress by Dyfed-Powys Police and the Health and Safety Executive. Oakwood is fully co-operating with the investigation.

"All of Oakwood's rides are subject to rigorous daily testing and are certified by independent safety consultants on an annual basis. It would be inappropriate at this stage for us to comment any further."