Man, 19, drowned in river while swimming with friend

A teenager drowned in a river after entering the water with a friend to swim while they were under the influence of alcohol, an inquest has heard.

Thomas Bruce-Gregg, 19, disappeared in the River Ouse near King's Staith in York in the early hours of 27 June 2025.

North Yorkshire Coroner's Court heard that he and a female friend had been drinking before they tried to swim from a sandbank at Queen's Staith.

Assistant coroner Catherine Devereux said that Bruce-Gregg, who had a history of alcohol misuse, died from drowning and recorded a conclusion of misadventure.

The inquest heard that Bruce-Gregg, from Malton, and his friend were captured on CCTV on the sandbank in "good spirits" after drinking a "considerable amount of alcohol".

Partially undressed, they both then entered the water and started swimming to the middle of the river.

Bruce-Gregg was then seen getting into difficulties and disappearing beneath the surface.

The woman, who was ahead of him, swam back to the sandbank and called 999.

North Yorkshire Police arrived shortly after 02:50 BST and after a search, his body was recovered later that morning from the bed of the river.

A postmortem found no visible injuries to Bruce-Gregg, but toxicology tests revealed that he had alcohol in his bloodstream.

The woman, also 19, was arrested on suspicion of assault at the time of Bruce-Gregg's death, but was later released and no further action was taken against her.

Devereux said there were no suspicious circumstances or third party involvement.

She offered her sympathies to Bruce-Gregg's parents, who attended the inquest.

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