Flintshire residents have paid tribute to a young boy from Liverpool who lost his battle for life on Saturday.

Dozens of people took to Flint Castle to pay tribute to Alfie Evans, the 23-month-old toddler who had been receiving treatment at Alder Hey Children's Hospital.

His parents, Tom Evans and Kate James broke the news by posting on Facebook: "Our baby boy grew his wings tonight at 2.30 am. We are heartbroken."

Alfie, who would have celebrated his third birthday on May 9, was at the centre of a legal battle over whether to withdraw life support treatment.

When Tiffany Edwards, of Greenfield, heard of the youngster's death, her compassion as a mother led her to organise an impromptu balloon release on Flint foreshore the following day.

Videos and images by Geoff Abbott

Miss Edwards began "spreading the word as fast as we could" in a bid to collect as many people and balloons as a tribute to the "brave" boy.

She said: "I knew people wanted to pay their respects but couldn't get to Alder Hey. So I decided to organise something locally for Sunday."

Although Miss Edwards said she is not related to Alfie's family, she has followed and sympathised with his cause "from the beginning."

She said: "It's very devastating but he has left his footprint in our hearts. I wanted somewhere nice for Alfie's honour, and I thought Flint Castle was the best place for that.

"I have four young children so I couldn't ever imagine the heartbreak that poor Alfie's parents have gone through."

She added: "More people showed up than I thought. It was a crazy moment because when the time came to let the balloons go, it started raining for only a few seconds so I'm assuming little Alfie was there with us."