Students pay tribute to canoeist

Roger Bates was described as a "wonderful person" by his partner

Students and colleagues have paid tribute to a canoeist who died on a weekend expedition from a university.

Roger Bates, 42, a finance assistant at the University of Sussex in Brighton, died on the River Dee in Denbighshire on Saturday when he became stuck.

Mr Bates was among 20 members of the Students' Union Sussex Canoe Club who left for the trip on Friday.

"Everyone was devastated that it had happened to such a nice guy," said student Duncan Stokes.

Fellow student Ricky Coleman said Mr Bates was a "genuinely funny guy".

He said he would remember him laughing as the group made its way along the river before the incident, which happened between Llangollen and Trefor.

"Roger was so relaxed, and enjoying himself, which was nice to see," he added.

Director of finance at the university, Allan Spencer, said Mr Bates was friendly and outgoing and enormously popular on campus.

His partner of 16 years, Philip Turner, who saw him off before the weekend, said he was a "wonderful person" and he would miss him terribly.

After the accident, Mr Bates was flown by air ambulance to Wrexham Maelor Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

North-east Wales coroner John Hughes opened and adjourned an inquest into the death on Monday.

No-one else was injured and police said there were no suspicious circumstances.