Probe launched into River Tay canoe tragedy which killed Simon (19)

Apr 13 2010 Perthshire Advertiser Tuesday

TAYSIDE Police will submit a death report to the Procurator Fiscal following the tragic drowning of a canoeist at a white water hot spot.

The victim, student Simon Fletcher (19) from Stockton-on-Tees, drowned in rapids on the River Tay at Lower Grandtully after his canoe got wedged under a rock at 1.30pm last Wednesday.

Following the recovery of his body, Perth and Kinross Council, the Health and Safety Executive and Tayside Police liaised to establish the circumstances of the tragic event.

“As the young man concerned was an experienced canoeist taking part in a private leisure activity, the incident is outwith the scope of the Health and Safety at Work legislation and Perth and Kinross Council is not empowered to investigate it further,” a council spokesman said.

A police spokesman said that as there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding the victim’s death, police would submit a ‘sudden death inquiry’ to the Procurator Fiscal, as was the standard practice with all sudden deaths.

Simon’s body was recovered just after 5pm last Thursday following a complex joint operation in extremely challenging conditions by emergency personnel and local volunteers.

His grief-stricken parents, who had travelled to Scotland after hearing the grim news and were being consoled by police family liaison officer Craig Gardner, watched the operation with their other son and his friends.

Simon, an experienced kayaker, had been in Scotland since the previous Friday with a group of 12, including his twin brother, and had been practising for an event when his canoe hit a large rock dubbed ‘the magnet’ by locals.

Despite valiant efforts by rescuers, including an RAF rescue helicopter, the teenager drowned, with an operation to retrieve his body relaunched by a 47-strong team of rescuers on Thursday at 6am.

Before deploying a raft in the ferocious torrent manned by two volunteers at 1pm and controlled by teams pulling ropes, police and emergency teams had utilised all available expertise to formulate a safe plan.

“Not only mountain rescue teams but also the water sports users of the river, professional guides, instructors and the Scottish Canoe Association – everybody’s ideas have been considered,” said Sergeant Jim Aitken of the Search and Rescue Unit.

A second attempt to cut the submerged canoe in half and dislodge both it and the body – involving three volunteers from watersports specialists Freespirit and Adventure Scotland – was successful just after 5pm.

Operation head Inspector Ian Scott, of Tayside Police, said the body was retrieved about half a mile downstream

“It was a very unusual and technical operation and nobody really had any previous experience in such an incident, so there was nothing we could have trained for,” he said.

“After full and exhaustive consultation with everyone concerned, we all agreed this was the best course of action to maintain paramount safety in very difficult conditions.”

Insp Scott described the operation as a great example of a working partnership between police and emergency services and non government agencies and volunteers.

“At the post-operation debrief, everyone felt we couldn’t have done much differently,” he said.

“My own feelings are that this was just a tragic accident in an area renowned nationally for great white water sporting and as with any adventure sport, there is an element of risk.”