A TEAM of firefighters pulled a fire engine through the streets of Bolton on Thursday as part of a four-day charity marathon to raise funds for the family of a dead colleague.

The fundraising event was dedicated to Paul Cross, a 31-year-old firefighter from Manchester who died in August on his way to work - five weeks before he was due to marry his fiance, Dionne McKinlay. The couple had a three-year-son called Ethan.

Kevin Quinn, a firefighter from London, was one of the six-strong team who pulled the seven ton vehicle through the town, accompanied by Mr Cross's brother Lee, an IT consultant.

Mr Quinn said: "We started off from Bolton Fire Station at about 2pm today and it's taken us two hours to cover four miles.

"There was six of us pulling the engine with another three officers leading the way with a bucket collection. It's too early to say how much we've raised so far but we've been taken aback by people's generosity and the response we've had from the public.

"We're a real mixture - some of us are from London - some from Bolton.

"We started the four day fundraiser on Wednesday and we'll be carrying on until Christmas Eve.

"We want to raise as much money as we can for Paul's family but it's also a way of paying tribute to him."

Lee Cross said: "When my brother was alive he always referred to his colleagues in the fire service as his second family.

"It was only after he died that I realised what he meant.

"The support my parents, the family and Dionne has had from them has been incredible.

"Today's been amazing and I'm sure Paul would have been very proud to know just how much people thought of him."