TWO schoolgirls were trapped and injured - and almost fell to their deaths - inside an old church.

And 11-year-old Leanne Cartwright, who gashed her leg, today warned other youngsters to steer clear of empty buildings during the half-term break.

Leanne, of Garbett Street, Accrington, was plucked to safety with her pal Maxine Tattersall after they became trapped in the former Unsectarian Mission, Cotton Street, Accrington.

Police, firefighters and paramedics were involved in the rescue.

The girls fell on to a ledge in the building, just inches from a potentially fatal drop on to a floor strewn with rubble and glass.

Firefighters had to carry them to safety down a ladder. Leanne, a pupil at Rhyddings High School, Oswaldtwistle, was taken to Blackburn Infirmary where she had stitches in a deep gash to her thigh.

Maxine, 12, of Medina Close, Scaitcliffe, Accrington, was treated for a cut hand.

Leanne said: "I was frightened. I didn't think it would be dangerous.

"People should not climb on old buildings. It really hurt when I had to have the stitches."

Her father Ken added: "I would like to warn parents to think carefully about where their children are.

"It sounds like a bit of fun, but it could be very serious. One of them could have been killed."

Maxine's mother did not want to talk about the incident.

Sergeant Richard Clare, of Accrington police, said officers received a call from someone who had seen the youngsters on the roof.

He added: "They ended up falling about six feet and narrowly missed falling another 30 to 40 feet."

A police officer had climbed into the building to comfort the girls, who were both screaming.

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