Dad's barn fire horror.

Byline: By Robert Brooks 

A father who raised the alarm when he saw a barn full of straw bales on fire near his farm cottage had no idea his son and a young friend were inside, it emerged last night.

Terry Greenyer called in firefighters to tackle a huge blaze which erupted at Buckton Farm, near Belford, Northumberland, on Saturday night.

But as firefighters from four stations battled to control the burning building, he and wife Michelle discovered that their teenage son David and his friend Jonathan Mahoney were missing.

It was not until the next morning that emergency crews damping down the embers confirmed their worst fears.

David Greenyer, 14, and his friend Jonathan, also 14, from The Meadows, Belford, both died in the fire.

Yesterday, police confirmed the two bodies found in the gutted building were likely to be the remains of the boys.

David lived in his parents' farm cottage just a stone's throw from the barn which had contained 500 tons of baled straw. His friend had been staying with the Greenyer family for the night.

The boys, both described as academically gifted and outgoing, were last seen by Mr Greenyer as he left to collect his

eldest son from work in Berwick at around 7.30pm on Saturday.

Jonathan had been dropped off in Buckton by his parents, Michael and Angela, three hours earlier.

David, a keen golfer and karate student, became close friends with Jonathan ( called Jon by his family ( when the pair joined Berwick High School, and were in Year 10 together.

Jon, an Army Cadet with the Belford Detachment, had aspirations to become an RAF pilot, and enjoyed outdoor pursuits including shooting, cycling and canoeing.

When Mr Greenyer returned at around 8.15pm the thought he saw fireworks.

When he realised it was the barn on fire he called 999.

By 9.20pm it emerged that the boys were absent, and a huge search was launched in the surrounding area, involving police dog handlers and a helicopter.

Detective Superintendent Steve Wade said yesterday: "The investigation is ongoing and likely to take weeks or months, rather than days, to complete.

"The reality is that, because of the intensity of the fire, it is not possible to identify the remains by normal means.

"We will need DNA testing to formally identify whether this is David and Jonathan."

He added: "While we have to keep an open mind, it is my belief at this time that this is likely to be the remains of the two boys."

Fire investigators were joined by experts from the Forensic Science Service based in Wakefield and a Home Office pathologist at the scene yesterday, as the hours leading up to the incident were painstakingly pieced together.

Det Supt Wade added: "Both families are absolutely traumatised, and are being attended to by specially trained police liaison officers."