The death of a York student who died in a river has been ruled as an accident, a coroner concluded.
Taymoor Hassan, a York St John student, was sadly found dead in December 2024.
The 19-year-old’s body was recovered from the River Foss after an investigation into his disappearance.
This concludes a previous inquest that Mr Hassan had drowned in the river.
The student from Bradford was seen on CCTV “stumbling” next to the River Foss in York before his reported death, according to senior coroner Jon Heath.
At the time, North Yorkshire Police believed there not to be any suspicious circumstances around Mr Hassan’s death, and it was later confirmed by Assistant Coroner Alison Norton that the cause was drowning.
Senior coroner Jon Heath investigated the case last year. He said: “(It was) likely that [Mr Hassan] unintentionally entered the river… He had been seen on CCTV stumbling on the riverside path prior to his disappearance from sight.”
His death was confirmed by the River Foss at 2.12pm on December 5th 2024.
Mr Hassan’s brother, Tayyab Shahzada, shared a heartfelt tribute about his younger brother on December 8th, a few days after his body was recovered.
In a statement issued to Telegraph & Argus, he said: “Taymoor was a dedicated student at York St John University, where he was pursuing his passion for cybersecurity.
“A proud graduate of St Bede’s School in Bradford, he was the youngest of four siblings and cherished his family.
“He was known for his kindness and willingness to help others, always putting everyone else first,” the statement said.
“Taymoor had a passion for fashion, shoes and hair, and his vibrant personality shone through, making him popular and confident despite his vision challenges.
“Taymoor was a hard worker with dreams of travelling and was eagerly planning to go on Umrah with his mum.
“He was close to all of his family, including those who lived far away, and was often spoiled by his siblings as the baby of the family.
“We are all shocked and heartbroken by this loss and are struggling to come to terms with it.
“Taymoor will be deeply missed, but his spirit will live on in the memories we share.”
Mr Hassan’s death has caused efforts amongst York locals to install “grab chains” on the banks of York’s rivers, to prevent further accidental deaths.
A River Safety Group spokesperson explained future efforts after commissioning the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) to review river safety.
They told The York Press: “The most recent RoSPA this year did not recommend fitting any more CCTV or grab rails and the River Safety Group continues to caution people against entering the river unless they are trained or supervised.”
“Efforts were made in 2015 to improve river safety across York, which the River Safety Group further explained: “As the national experts, [RoSPA] recommended additional high-visivility escaoe ladders and updated life buiys which we installed in 2015.”
Some locals are frustrated over no update since then, telling The York Press: “One escape ladder in Brownie Dyke is no answer to the risk of drowning along this lonely stretch of river.
“I call on the River Safety Group to wake up to the real situation and install grab chains and CCTV.”
Featured image via Google Maps
