Grandtully rapids. Photo: Kirsty Smith CC-BY-SA-2.0

A canoeist has died in the Scottish Highlands after becoming trapped in fast flowing water.

The 19-year-old, from the Cleveland area, got into difficulty on the River Tay near Grandtully, south-west of Pitlochry yesterday.

Tayside Police said its officers, Tayside Fire and Rescue Service and the Scottish Ambulance Service were called to the area about 1.30pm after reports the paddler was submerged and trapped under a rock.

An RAF Sea King helicopter also went to the incident and a local rescue boat and crew joined the operation.

A spokesperson for Tayside Police said: “With the river in spate, the emergency services were met with very challenging conditions and their efforts to rescue the male continued, without success, until nightfall.

“It is understood that the 19-year-old was part of a group of canoeists from a club based in Cleveland.”

Police said the man’s brother and parents have been notified and made their way to Tayside.

Members of Tayside Police’s search and rescue team were today attempting to recover his body from the river.

The Health and Safety Executive has been informed.

Grandtully rapids, 5km (3 miles) downstream from Aberfeldy, are a renowned canoeing and rafting venue with slalom gates for kayakers and canoeists. The Scottish Canoe Association reported that the river had been closed following the man’s death, and a planned weekend slalom event on the river cancelled.

The man’s death followed that of kayaker Emily Parker the previous day in the River Coe in Glencoe.