A British kayaker is feared to be dead after disappearing in a river in Switzerland, reports have said, as local authorities are racing against time to track him down.
Bren Orton, 29, had been trapped by strong underwater currents in the River Melezza in Switzerland’s Italian-speaking canton of Ticino.
Orton had posted footage of himself kayaking fewer than 48 hours before his disappearance on Thursday afternoon – and rescue efforts from Swiss and Italian authorities are still underway.
A Ticino police spokesman said: “Shortly before 2.45pm in the area of Palagnedra, a man who was previously in a kayak was reported missing in the Melezza river.
The Melezza is a popular spot for thrill-seeking kayakers
Wikimedia Commons
“The searches – currently unsuccessful and still ongoing – began immediately and involve agents from the cantonal police and, in support, from the Ascona police as well as rescuers from the Locarnese and Valli Ambulance Service.”
Pyranha, the firm which makes Orton’s high-performance kayaks, said: “It is with a heavy heart that we announce an accident involving Bren Orton.
“While kayaking with a group on the Melezza River in Switzerland, Bren became trapped in a recirculating feature and did not resurface.
“Authorities and friends are tirelessly continuing their search efforts, and at this time, Bren is considered missing.”
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An accident report published by American Whitewater, a non-profit whitewater river conservation group, said “Bren Orton, a professional kayaker, was on a kayaking trip with friends on the Melezza River in Ticino, Switzerland, when he became trapped in a recirculating feature.
“This dangerous spot in the river causes water to flow back on itself, making it extremely difficult to escape. Despite his friends’ immediate attempts to rescue him, Bren vanished from sight and has not been seen since.”
Orton has found fame through his extreme sports achievements – he boasts an Instagram following of almost 60,000 people, and broke a world record in 2018 after kayaking down a 128ft-high waterfall in Mexico.
His most recent video, of him navigating a stretch of whitewater on a river in Northern Italy, prompted hopeful comments from followers after he was first reported missing, but some of Orton’s fans fear he may have died.
He had fallen in love with the high-octane watersport on a school trip to the Lake District aged just nine – and before finally going pro, Orton had worked a range of odd jobs to earn money on the side while he honed his craft.
The 29-year-old has said previously: “In the lead up to getting paid to go kayaking, I think I’ve worked almost every job possible.
“I worked in a call centre, as a labourer on a building site, in a gym, at the national Watersports Centre and as a gravedigger. I did some medical trials to earn money as well.
“I only did the grave-digging for a few months, but the medical trials were the big one, even if they were a bit sketchy.”