A young thrill-seeker who died after he was thrown from his canoe while trying to tame some of the River Tay’s most turbulent rapids has been named by police.
Simon Fletcher (19), from Stockton on Tees in Cleveland, was negotiating a popular stretch of water at Lower Grandtully on Wednesday when disaster struck. It is understood his body became trapped by rocks shortly before 2pm.
Amazingly, Mr Fletcher was initially stuck in an air pocket, giving frantic rescue crews a two-hour window of opportunity to free him. However, pressure from the raging torrent eventually proved too great and the pocket gave way.
Repeated efforts to haul him from the freezing waters were in vain and his body remained trapped underwater overnight.
His body was eventually recovered from underneath a rock on Thursday afternoon.
It is understood that Mr Fletcher was part of a group of canoeists from a club based in Teesside.
At one point during the gruelling seven-hour effort to free the man, search and rescue workers were lowered to the scene from a helicopter high above the river. Despite locating his body, they were unable to pull him free.
A crowd of onlookers watched in horror as the drama unfolded.
“The rapids are pretty rough on this stretch of river and it is a really popular spot for canoeing and white-water rafting,” one said.
“The rapids come over a lot of big rocks and it seems the poor guy just got pinned underneath one of them.
“There were loads of canoes and rafts in the water and people were frantically trying to free him but it just wasn’t happening.”
The eye-witness said that, at one point, rescue crews managed to attach a line to the man’s body.
“They hooked up a line and winches but they could just could not seem to free him,” he continued.
“There were loads of emergency crews in attendance and even a helicopter but it eventually became apparent it was a case of recovery rather than rescue.”
A Navy Sea King helicopter from Prestwick was scrambled after the alarm was raised.
“The chopper flew over and seemed to take a look before turning around and hovering above the scene,” the onlooker said.
“Somebody was then lowered from the helicopter and struggled to get a purchase among the rocks.
“He was there for about five minutes but he obviously could not shift the rocks.”Fast flowingOnlookers described how the river was “extremely high and fast flowing” which complicated the task of rescuers.
A Scottish Ambulance Service spokeswoman confirmed details of the incident.
“We were alerted to reports of a male stuck under a rock in the river and an ambulance from Pitlochry attended along with a local GP,” she said.
“A trauma team from Ninewells also attended along with a helicopter from Prestwick.”
It is understood one final desperate bid to free the man was made before darkness fell on Wednesday
However, following an inter-agency meeting between emergency service personnel, the agonising decision to leave the body overnight was taken.
The river around Grandtully is a haven for paddle sport fanatics and is home to a host of national ranking competitions.
The Scottish Canoe Association regularly holds events at the site and it has proved to be a popular training ground for some of the country’s most successful canoeists.
As a mark of respect, Slalom UK competitions that were due to take place at Grandtully this weekend have been cancelled.
(Story updated at 16:04, April 8)