The body of a British kayaker who went missing after his expedition team lost control during flash floods in Ecuador has been found, authorities said.
Adam Vaughan, 22, of Newbury, Berkshire, was kayaking with four others when they got into difficulty during a flash flood on the Rio Abanico river in the country’s south east on January 20.
Two Irish men David Higgins, 26, and Alexander MacGourty, 19, have been confirmed by the Ecuadorian authorities to have died in the accident.
Two other men, local guide Joaquin Meneses, 18, and American Jeremiath Stewart both survived the incident.
The body of British kayaker Adam Vaughan (above) who went missing after his expedition team lost control during flash floods in Ecuador has been found
Over the weekend, the Morona canton’s fire service confirmed on social media that a body had been discovered.
They said they had been ‘alerted’ to the ‘presence of a corpse’ and that it matched the last remaining kayaker to be located.
Police, fire and judicial personnel attended the site and confirmed the body was Mr Vaughan’s, the El Comercio newspaper reported.
On Facebook, friends of Mr Vaughan replied to the fire service’s post to thank authorities for their efforts during the seven-day search for him.
Police, fire and judicial personnel attended the site and confirmed the body was Mr Vaughan’s
The 22-year-old was kayaking with four others when they got into difficulty during a flash flood on the Rio Abanico river in the country’s south east on January 20
‘We are all so grateful for the huge and incredible efforts that you have made to find Adam – thank you all so much,’ wrote one.
Another added: ‘Thank you for all you’ve done.. my friend can finally come home.’
Friends also took to social media to pay tribute to Mr Vaughan, an instructor at Cardiff’s white water rafting centre, describing him as ‘an amazing, humble and adventurous friend.’
Will Usherwood wrote: ‘Adam touched so many people’s lives all around the world and stayed humble and true to himself; he will be missed by many. Rest easy brother!!’
Ellie Thornber added: ‘Even at 22, Adam had already achieved so much. Your boundless positive attitude, passion for adventure and lust for life inspired so many. You will be so so missed but never forgotten.’
Over the weekend, the Morona canton’s fire service confirmed on social media that a body had been discovered
They said they had been ‘alerted’ to the ‘presence of a corpse’ and that it matched the last remaining kayaker to be located
The 22-year-old studied Spanish at Cardiff University, with his third year spent in Colombia, and was the vice president of the university’s kayak club
Shortly after the accident, Andy Kettlewell wrote: ‘Today has been one of the hardest days of my life so far, hearing the news that an amazing, humble and adventurous friend was caught in a tragic accident with a group of friends in Ecuador.
‘Adam was a true gentleman with qualities and values of the highest order, he did everything with a smile and no matter how hard things were he was always there with a smile and cracking a joke.’
His parents Christopher and Gillian are being assisted by the Foreign Office.
‘We are assisting the family of a British man following his death in Ecuador, and are in contact with the Ecuadorian authorities,’ an FCO spokesman said.
On Facebook, friends of Mr Vaughan replied to the fire service’s post to thank authorities for their efforts during the seven-day search for him
Mr Vaughan began kayaking when he was just 11.
He studied Spanish at Cardiff University, with his third year spent in Colombia, and was the vice president of the university’s kayak club.
In a Facebook statement, the group described Mr Vaughan as a ‘fantastic teacher, inspiration and vice president’.
The massive rescue and recovery effort, co-ordinated by a joint committee with the support of an Army helicopter, involved firefighters, Red Cross, police, armed forces, park rangers and the local Kayak Club.
Mr Vaughan began kayaking when he was just 11 and worked as an instructor at the white water rafting centre in Cardiff
The kayak team had been caught by a flash flood in a very remote part of Ecuador.
Mr Meneses was found alive two days after the accident, telling rescuers he had survived by eating insects and naranjillo (edible plants).
The Ecuadorian guide later told a press conference that although all of the kayakers were very experienced, the river was so powerful that ‘getting out of the kayak was practically facing death’.
‘The flow of that river was so strong that getting out of the kayak was practically facing death,’ he said, according to El Comercio.
‘In the canyons there were rapids with waves and hollows of meters of height. Being there was crazy.’