A SCHOOLBOY from Eastleigh had to swim for his life when he fell into a fast-flowing river while out riding his bike.

Aaron Goodfellow had a lucky escape after he was sent flying into the river by Bishopstoke playing fields following a collision with his friend's bike.

Aaron, aged 11, from Fair Oak, plunged under the freezing cold water before struggling desperately to the riverbank, where his younger brother and their friend pulled him out.

The Fair Oak junior school pupil was left badly shaken by the accident on Sunday but was uninjured.

Today his mother Janet was keen to warn of the dangers of playing near rivers swollen and flooded by the recent downpours.

Janet, 38, a home carer, of Marcus Close, said: "I presumed my children would not be so silly and would not go near a river.

"All I can say is don't presume.

"Boys tend to think they are superhuman. It was a miracle that Aaron got out. I do not know how he managed it."

She added: "I only hope that this was a hard lesson learnt."

Aaron had gone down to the playing fields with his nine-year-old brother Josh and a friend to see how bad the flooding was.

When returning back along the river path, Aaron's bike hit his friend's and both he and the bike somersaulted into the water.

Janet first learnt of the accident when Aaron returned home soaking wet.

"I thought, 'What have you been up to now?'

"I don't think I realised how serious it was at first," she said.

"He was very shocked for the rest of the day and said to me that he would never go near a river again."

Janet also wants to thank the two dog-walkers who comforted Aaron immediately after the accident and pulled his bike from the river.