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Deon Mullings tragedy: Family recall final moments of father who drowned while recovering daughter's ball from pool

The devastated family of a man who drowned while chasing his daughter's ball has described the moments she lost her 'devoted' partner.

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Deon Mullings had been playing ball games with his daughters on a trip to the Fens Pools Nature Reserve in Pensnett with his wife Louise.

When the ball went into the Middle Pool, the father-of-four, aged 35, entered the water to try and retrieve it - but never returned.

Alarm bells rang when he failed to resurface.

His terrified wife entered the water to try and help Mr Mullings, but she was unable to find him. She said she watched and waited helplessly for the emergency services to arrive.

More than half an hour later, Mr Mullings was pulled from the water by rescue divers. Resuscitation attempts were made at the poolside and he was rushed to Birmingham's Queen Elizabeth Hospital, but could not be saved.

His sister-in-law Hayley Walker-Mullings, aged 27, said the family had visited the pools at the nature reserve many times before.

"He was lovely, he was so quiet. He was a devoted father, his life was his wife and kids," she said.

"My daughter absolutely loved him, he was the one to go and play with the kids. He was so family-orientated, he never went out. It was all about his family."

Mr Millings' wife Louise has been left devastated by the tragic loss.

Middle Pool, where the tragedy happened

Mrs Walker-Millings said: "She is distraught, she can't sleep. It's a complete shock."

She said not knowing why Mr Millings did not come back up from beneath the surface has made the loss even more painful.

"From what I understand the ball was only three or four feet from the edge of the lake, and then it went further. He took off his shoes and socks to get in and we don't know if something pulled him down or he hit his head," she said.

Dudley Council has said it will launch an investigation following the death as the site is staffed and maintained by the authority.

Mr Mullings was born in Jamaica and had moved to the Black Country around 15 years ago. The majority of his family live in Jamaica. He had been married to wife Louise for around 12 years and was unemployed.

Mrs Walker-Millings said he was utterly devoted to his four daughters, aged between 18 months and 11.

Final arrangements for Mr Millings' funeral have yet to be made but the family are planning to return him to the family plot in Jamaica.

A fundraising page has been set up to try and help make that possible.

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