Swimmers complete fundraising relay for friend

Jim McParland, a firefighter based in Wednesbury, said everyone's been affected by his loss

Nearly 50 friends of a firefighter who died while attempting to swim the English Channel have completed a fundraising relay swim for him.

The 36-hour challenge was in memory of Iain Hughes who died in June last year.

The continuous swimming relay at the David Lloyd health club in Dudley involved volunteers swimming for 45 minutes each.

Jim McParland, a firefighter based in Wednesbury, said: "Everyone's been affected by this loss, so it's been great to get everyone together."

He said the swimmers had managed to complete more than 4,000 lengths of the pool and smashed their goal of swimming the equivalent of the channel.

The swimmers all wore colourful "budgie smuggler" swimwear.

Mr McParland added: "He would love this, the fact that we're all wearing his budgie smugglers, he would find that hilarious because he loved them he loved wearing them."

Iain Hughes, from Dudley, was raising money for three charities when he died

Mr Hughes, who was 42, started his solo channel challenge with a support boat from Dover on 20 June last year before disappearing.

He was confirmed dead when his body was found in waters near Belgium.

The crew manager had been raising money for three charities including the Fire Fighters Charity, British Heart Foundation and Midland Air Ambulance.

An online fundraiser he launched before his death was inundated with more than £80,000 in donations, far exceeding the £21,000 target.

Proceeds from the relay will go to the same organisations.