Brit killed on US rafting trip

Tributes have been paid to a British man who died during a white-water rafting trip in America. Steve Morton, who was 47 and from Cambridge, is reported to have fallen from a boat while exploring the Kenai Penisula in Alaska.

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Brit rafting death met with 'great sadness' by colleagues

A tribute has been paid to Steve Morton from his former employers, international exams group Cambridge Assessment, after he died in a white-water rafting accident in Alaska.

It is with great sadness that we heard of the tragic death of Steve Morton in a white-water rafting accident in Alaska.

Steve, who worked with Cambridge Assessment on major IT projects over many years, set out on a trek early in May to climb Mount McKinley in Alaska and despite adverse conditions he made it to the summit.

Our thoughts and prayers are with Steve's wife Vanessa and their children.

– Cambridge Assessment spokesman

Mr Morton and his wife Vanessa Langlois are said to have married in 2012, but had known each other for 10 years before that.

The couple had five children - three girls aged between 24 and 17, a 12-year-old stepson and a seven-year-old boy.

Rafting route included 'very violent rapids'

An Alaska State Troopers spokesman told Sky News Steve Morton, who is reported to have died following a white-water rafting accident, was on a trip arranged with NOVA River Runners.

The company described the risks of the route on their website, saying the risk of injury to swimmers was "moderate to high", whilst water conditions "may make self-rescue difficult."

It added that the route could include "obstructed or very violent rapids which could expose a participant to above average endangerment."

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Climber dies after scaling America's highest mountain

Mount McKinley, the highest mountain in the USA. Credit: Maarten Noort/Press Association

47-year-old Steve Morton, who is reported to have died following white-watering accident in Alaska on Tuesday, was an experienced and careful climber, according to his wife.

Mr Morton has just scaled Mount McKinley, the highest mountain in the USA.

Vanessa Langlois told Sky News her husband had told her he was planning to go white-water rafting on a notoriously difficult route in the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska. She said:

"He told me the people in his climbing team had suggested he go white-water rafting and that he would be given a test to make sure he was competent before he went."

"His climbing colleagues knew him to be really strong and careful. They were experienced in rafting and must have felt he was able to handle the activity."

Briton dies in white-water rafting trip

A British man has died following a white-water rafting trip in America, it has been reported.

Steve Morton, 47, from Cambridge, fell from a boat while exploring the rapids and canyons of Six Mile Creek in the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska, Sky News said.

He was reportedly pulled from the water unconscious and was airlifted to hospital in Anchorage where he died.

His wife Vanessa Langlois told Sky News that her husband had been on a climbing holiday and just days earlier had reached the summit of the nearby Mount McKinley, the highest mountain in the United States.

She spoke to him shortly before his fatal adventure.

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