Missing 29-year-old British kayaker found dead in Swiss lake

The 29-year-old was reportedly pulled into the water by the waves and did not resurface.

The body of a British kayaker who disappeared in Switzerland has been found, Guardian Two weeks earlier, Bren Orton was reported missing on the Melezza River in the Swiss canton of Ticino. The 29-year-old from Warrington was reportedly pulled into the water by the waves and did not resurface.

A post by his sponsor Pyranha Kayak said: “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our friend and ambassador Bren Orton. According to reports, Bren’s body was recovered yesterday in Lake Maggiore, Italy, following a tragic accident on the nearby Melezza River on May 16th.”

A spokesman for the Swiss police explained where Mr Orton had disappeared and how he was found. A police spokesman said on Thursday: “Shortly before 1pm, the lifeless body of the man who disappeared on May 16 while kayaking in the Melezza was found in the waters of Lake Maggiore in Locarno. The alarm was raised by a sailor who found the body in the water and immediately notified the emergency services.”

Mr Orton was a social media influencer who set a world record in 2018 by plunging 128 feet down the Big Banana Falls in Mexico. He started kayaking when he was nine years old after discovering his love for the sport during a school trip. He regularly documented his kayaking trips and travels on Instagram, where he amassed over 58,000 followers. His Insta bio read: “I’m trying to never grow up and kayak forever.”

In a 2020 interview, he described kayaking as a “sport that challenges you on so many levels, introduces you to the nicest people in the world and takes a kid from Warrington to Africa in search of the best rapids.”

Following the announcement, hundreds of people have paid tribute to Mr Orton. Former kayaking world champion James Reeves paid tribute, writing on Facebook: “Every few years we seem to lose a friend of our sport. Any loss is hard and this one cuts deep. Bren Orton was an incredible human being. From his teenage years, his warm smile and friendly nature shone as brightly as his kayaking skills… I had the privilege of mentoring Bren briefly in his early years. Then I watched in awe as he became one of the greatest whitewater kayakers of all time.”