A British kayaker has died after getting into difficulty in a French river.
The man in his 50s was on a group kayaking trip on the River Durance in Briancon in southeast France on Tuesday afternoon when witnesses spotted some of them in distress, local media reported.
“A rescue operation is under way in the town of Briancon to try to help kayakers in difficulty in the Durance,” Hautes-Alpes regional police posted on X.
At least three people were seen struggling in the water, Le Dauphine Libere reported.
Two of them were fighting against the river’s strong current to help the third, who had flipped over and was unconscious, according to the French daily regional newspaper.
Two of the kayakers were pulled out of the river uninjured, while the third – a British national – was recovered several kilometres downstream by firefighters and could not be resuscitated despite the best efforts of paramedics.
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The cause of the accident is being investigated. The high level of the water because of melting snow appears to have been a factor, La Provence reported.
It follows the death of an Irish kayaker on Monday in Saint-Paul-sur-Ubaye, the paper reported.
The father and brother of Jay Slater, the British teenager missing in Tenerife since Monday, have made emotional pleas for his safe return.
Warren Slater, the 19-year-old’s father, told Sky News he is “just hoping that somebody has helped him off this mountain”.
He added: “That’s all I want, that somebody has helped him get off this mountain. I just want him back and that’s it. He’s my son.”
His voice cracking, Mr Slater said the last few days have been “a nightmare, just a nightmare”.
Struggling to control his emotions, he then walked away from the camera as he repeated: “I just want him back and that’s it.”
Image: Pic: PA
Mr Slater’s brother, Zak Slater, echoed those words, saying: “We don’t know where he is, what’s happened, or anything. I don’t know what to say. We just want him to come home safe.”
He also became emotional as he said: “I just wish he’d come home.”
Image: Warren Slater (L) and Zak Slater
Image: Emergency workers near the village of Masca, Tenerife. Pic: PA
The pair have gone to Tenerife to help search for Jay, who was holidaying with friends before he disappeared. He had been at the NRG music festival with two friends on Sunday.
He was last heard from just after 8am on Monday, when he called his friend Lucy Law to say he was setting off to walk back to his accommodation after missing a bus.
It’s not clear whether he realised the journey could take as much as 11 hours.
Ms Law said he told her he was lost, in need of water, and only had 1% charge on his phone.
On Saturday, the sixth day of the search, police, rescue dogs and firefighters reconvened at Rural de Teno Park, the last location logged by Mr Slater’s phone.
Mr Slater is from the Lancashire town of Oswaldtwistle, where specialist officers are continuing to support his family, Lancashire Constabulary said.
The force added it had made “an offer of support to the Guardia Civil to see if they need any additional resources”, which was rejected by Spanish authorities.
Image: Pic: PA
Missing teen’s mum has ‘not slept’
The apprentice bricklayer’s mother, who is also on the island, the largest in the Canary Islands, also made a direct plea to her missing son, saying: “We just need you home.”
Debbie Duncan said she has “not slept” since he disappeared.
Asked how the family was coping with the situation, she said: “We’re not. I’m not coping very well at all. I’ve not slept, I’m exhausted. It’s been awful. I can’t give up on him, I just can’t.”
The Prince of Wales has thanked Taylor Swift for a “great concert” as he shared a photo of the pop superstar taking a selfie with him and his children George and Charlotte.
Watching the US singer perform at Wembley Stadium, the future king was also spotted shaking his arms to Shake It Off as he celebrated his 42nd birthday.
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Prince William ‘shakes it off’ with dance moves at Swift gig
“Thank you Taylor Swift for a great evening,” Prince William wrote on Instagram.
Swift posted her selfie with William, George and Charlotte alongside her boyfriend, NFL star Travis Kelce.
“Happy Bday M8,” Swift wrote on Instagram. “London shows are off to a splendid start.”
Image: Taylor’s version. Pic: Taylor Swift/Instagram
William’s cousin Zara Tindall and her husband Mike Tindall were among the star-studded crowd, which reportedly included Bridgerton star Nicola Coughlan and model Cara Delevingne.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer was also present as he took time off from the campaign trail to attend the first night of the London leg of Swift’s record-breaking Eras tour.
Image: Keir Starmer with wife Victoria. Pic: Keir Starmer/X
Prince William previously shared the stage with Swift and Jon Bon Jovi for a performance of Livin’ On A Prayer for a charity event at Kensington Palace in 2013.
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Prince William performs Bon Jovi hit with Taylor Swift
Swiftis performing three gigs at the 90,000-capacity London venue this weekend – on Friday, Saturday and Sunday – before returning to the venue for a further five in August.
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Image: Taylor Swift performs at Wembley Stadium. Pic: AP
Her hit Shake It Off was also played at the traditional Changing of the Guard ceremony at Buckingham Palace on Friday.
On Thursday it was revealed that Swift’s fans were expected to boost the London economy by £300m as the capital hosts more Eras Tour shows than any other city in the world, with nearly 640,000 people expected to attend across the eight dates.
The mother of Jay Slater, the British teenager missing in Tenerife, says she spent eight hours in a police station on Friday and believes police are “stepping up” their search.
Debbie Duncan told the Guardian she still thinks “something untoward” may have happened to her son.
She flew to the Spanish island on Tuesday, the day after the 19-year-old went missing, to help look for him.
On Saturday, the sixth day of the search, police, rescue dogs and firefighters reconvened at Rural de Teno Park, the last location logged by Mr Slater’s phone.
Ms Duncan told the Guardian police have said the “noise” around the case was affecting their investigation.
It comes after reports somebody logged into Mr Slater‘s Instagram account who was not him.
Rachel Louise Harg set up a GoFundMe page to go towards search efforts and a Facebook page to help find him, which had raised more than £26,000 of its £30,000 target by Saturday afternoon.
She said people who had been “hacking” the social media accounts of Mr Slater’s family were “sick in the head”.
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Tenerife local was last person to see Jay Slater
Ms Duncan said police had told her they were “investigating all leads”.
“They’ve got all the plans, their locations,” she added.
“They have got this map they were showing us, shaded different colours.”
She renewed calls for British police to help with the search, saying there had been a “problem with the language barrier”.
But Spanish police have rejected an offer by Lancashire Constabulary to assist. The force said while the case “falls outside the jurisdiction of UK policing”, it offered to support Spanish police “if they need any additional resources”.
Image: Search and rescue teams on the sixth day of the hunt. Pic: PA
The force added: “They have confirmed that at this time they are satisfied that they have the resources they need, but that offer remains open and they will contact us should that position change.”
Mr Slater is from the Lancashire town of Oswaldtwistle, where specialist officers are continuing to support his family, the force said.
The apprentice bricklayer was holidaying with friends on Tenerifebefore he disappeared, and had been at the NRG music festival on Sunday.
He was last heard from just after 8am on Monday, when he called his friend Lucy Law to say he was setting off on an 11-hour walk to get home after missing a bus.
She said he told her he was lost, in need of water, and only had 1% charge on his phone.