A 13-YEAR-OLD girl was indecently assaulted in a subway the second serious sex attack there in just two weeks.

The victim was in the Gannow Top underpass with a teenage boy she had met that evening when he subjected her to a sex attack.

The incident happened in the underpass which runs under junction 10 of the M65 at about 9.30pm on Wednesday.

Residents in the area today spoke of their shock at the incident, which comes two weeks after a mother carrying her baby and holding the hand of her young daughter was assaulted in the same underpass.

Following the latest assault the girl told detectives she had met her attacker earlier in the evening by the Derby Hotel, Padiham Road.

Yesterday the scene was sealed off while police scoured the area for clues.

The victim was taken to the Sexual Assault Forensic Examination (SAFE) Centre, near Preston, where she was due to be questioned by specially trained officers.

She was also due to be examined by a doctor to determine the full extent of the incident. The officer leading the case, Detective Inspector Derek Jones, today said the suspect was in his late teens.

He said: "Inquiries are at a very early stage but we are still keen to hear from anyone who may have witnessed the incident or who may have seen or heard anything suspicious in the Gannow Top area around the time of the offence."

Inspector Neil Wilkinson said: "We are investigating an incident involving a 13-year-old girl.

"She was taken to our SAFE Centre where she has been examined by a doctor and spoken to by specially trained officers.

"Our investigations are continuing."

In the first incident, at 4.45pm on May 19, the woman was walking with her children towards Fielden Street when the sex pest ran up groped her.

The attacker was described as white, in his mid 30s, about 5ft 6ins, plump and with short black hair. He was wearing blue tracksuit bottoms and a blue jacket.

Ben Robinson, 87, of Keith Street, said: "It is shocking to hear of these things as it is generally an okay area, although I certainly wouldn't walk through that area at night.

"There are quite a lot of kids who hang around up there, especially now it is the holidays."

Another woman, who asked not to be named, added: "This is terrible. I don't go through the subways."

Anyone with any information is urged to contact Burnley CID on 01282 425001 or Crimestoppers free and in confidence on 0800 555 111.