A father died after rescuing his young daughter from a river in Mid Wales, an inquest heard.

Philip Jack, 45, died on June 5 after diving into a fast-flowing river at Pantperthog, near Machynlleth, to save his six-year-old daughter Amy.

The inquest at Welshpool Magistrates Court yesterday heard that Amy had got into difficulty while playing in the water.

Mr Jack, from Birkenhead, Merseyside, sprinted from his tent and dived into the river, saving her and passing her on to the riverbank, before getting into difficulty himself.

Mr Jack and Amy had been on holiday at the beauty spot with his other daughter Rachel, 12, to give their pregnant mother Jane Marmion some respite.

A statement was read out by Powys coroner Mr Peter Maddox, on behalf of Michael Kealey, who was with Mr Jack at the time of the incident.

It said: “I had known Phil for years since work and it was a pleasant surprise to see him at the campsite.

“He invited my wife and I over for a drink and then we heard a shout and he sprinted down to the river.

“I didn’t hear anything for 30 seconds so made my way down there myself and could see Phil holding his daughter above the water.

“I got in up to my chest and we passed her on to the side. By then Phil had moved 15ft downstream and was silent. He was bobbing up and down and he must have been exhausted from the strong current and getting his daughter out.

“He went under water and never came up. I felt completely helpless.”

Paul Burrell also helped with the rescue effort. His statement said he helped lift Amy to the side.

“Then Mr Jack disappeared under water so I went down with a friend to try and get him out,” he said.

“I went down twice and couldn’t see him but then on the third attempt I saw his body on the bottom and grabbed his shirt and brought him up.”

The coroner said a postmortem examination found the cause of Mr Jack’s death was drowning. He recorded a verdict of accidental death.

Mr Jack’s father, David, said shortly after his death: “He was a terrific lad.”

By Andrew Morris