A FAMILY have paid tribute to a “kind and lovely” boy who died after crashing his vehicle on a farm.
Hector Eccles, 16, from Worsthorne, Lancashire, succumbed to his injuries after the Polaris Ranger Farmbike he was riding came off the road and crashed into a field.
Lancashire Police officers had been called to Extwistle Road at 12.41am on Saturday (March 30) following reports the vehicle had left the carriageway and crashed in a field.
No other vehicles were involved but a 17-year-old man from Burnley was also riding the vehicle – although he was not seriously injured.
Hector’s family have since released a tribute to him, issued by Lancashire Police.
The family wrote: “We would like to thank everyone for the kind words and sympathy over the last few days.
“This is our Hector on his farm with his animals, where he loved to spend is time.
“Always happiest: on the farm, at Gisburn Auction or with his friends and colleagues in Pendle Young Farmers.
“Hector will always be in our hearts and minds, we will always remember our: beautiful, kind and lovely boy.”
Sgt Martin Wilcock, from the force’s Road Policing Unit, said: “This collision has resulted in a teenager losing his life and my thoughts remain with Hector’s loved ones at this difficult time.
“Having carried out extensive work to establish the circumstances of what led to the collision, we are satisfied that this is no longer a criminal investigation and we are now carrying out enquiries on behalf of the Coroner.
“With that in mind, I would ask any witnesses or anyone with dashcam covering the area around that time to contact the police.
“A family is grieving and I would ask the public – particularly those on social media – not to engage in any unhelpful, unnecessary and hurtful speculation.”
