Drowning student stayed afloat in freezing water for 20 minutes shouting for help that never arrived, inquest hears

Published: 20:17, 22 July 2026 | Updated: 20:19, 22 July 2026 A student who drowned in a freezing city centre river stayed afloat for 20 minutes calling for help which never arrived, an inquest has heard.  Evan D'Andilly, from Scunthorpe, died four days before his 20th birthday after entering the River Ouse in York at around 3.03am on March 5, 2025.  The University of York student had been enjoying a night out with friends when he entered the water from Ouse Bridge. His body was found the following morning. Police officers arrived on the bank of the 41-metre-wide river within three minutes of Evan entering the water, it was heard on Wednesday. The 'kind and gentle' teen, who was studying business management, could be seen waving his arms in the air and desperately crying for help as officers shone torches at him in CCTV footage played to the court.  Evan's mother Lorraine D'Andilly told a previous hearing that the available riverside rescue equipment - multiple 18-metre reach poles and 20-metre throw lines - would not have reached her son. She added that it meant he 'lost a substantial chance of survival'.  York fire crews were notified about Evan at 3.09am - six minutes after he entered the water - and Acomb and York appliances arrived between 3.14am and 3.18am.  But the fire service's rescue boat was docked in Selby, around 14 miles away, and did not arrive to help Evan until 3.37am. The student was last sighted 14 minutes earlier. Evan D'Andilly, a business management student at the University of York, drowned four days before his 20th birthday Evan entered the River Ouse (pictured) in York on March 5, 2025, after a night out with friends The volunteer-run York Rescue Boat, moored close to Evan's location, was the nearest vessel capable of pulling off a water rescue and could have reached him quickly. The boat, however, was not called immediately, according to Ms D'Andilly.  Police called for the rescue boat at 3.10am, the inquest heard, and it didn't arrive until 3.22am, just one minute before the last sighting of the teenager.   In police bodycam footage played in court, PC Grace Sylvester, who shouted advice to Evan as he tried to stay above the water, could be heard saying: 'It's a city river. Why is it taking this long (for a rescue boat to arrive)?' PC Sylvester was stood next to the York Rescue Boat while Evan was in the water, and told the court: 'We just wished we had access to that.' Asked by Ms D'Andilly if the rescue equipment was not fit for purpose, the officer responded: 'On occasions it's worked. On occasions, it hasn't worked.' Sergeant Daniel Stubbs, who was the acting police inspector on the night of Evan's death, told the court both York Rescue Boat and the fire service's rescue vessel had been requested to attend the scene. Mr Stubbs however admitted he was unaware that the fire service's boat was not in York.  Ms D'Andilly questioned why York Rescue Boat was not called immediately by the fire service when it was told about the incident, rather than when Evan had been in the water for 10 minutes. 3.05am - 3.06am - Police arrive at riverbank 3.10am - York Rescue Boat notified 3.14am - Acomb fire appliance arrives 3.18am - York fire appliance arrives 3.22am - York Rescue Boat arrives 3.23am - Last time Evan is seen above the water 3.37am - Fire rescue boat arrives  She said her son had 'fought for another 10 minutes' to stay above the water, thereby extending the time in which he could have been rescued. 'He did everything he could to survive,' Ms D'Andilly said, adding: 'I will never understand how a safety protocol can be so flawed.' Ben Illsley, North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service's director of operational support and assurance, told the inquest there are 'no plans' to move the fire service's rescue boat from Selby to York in the next four years. He also said that if the rescue boat was moved to York, it would take one to two years for the fire service's staff to be trained to use it. Ms D'Andilly described her son as 'kind' with a 'gentle nature', and described his death as 'incredibly senseless' and a 'tragedy'.  She said: 'I still struggle to believe that Evan is gone from this world - that I will never see him again. 'It's hard to believe that my little water baby died from drowning.' Ms D'Andilly said her son was 'one in a million', adding that 'he is loved so much and we will miss him every second of every day.' Evan's father, Gordon D'Andilly, described his son as someone 'full of life' who 'got on with everyone really well'. The inquest heard Evan struggled with his mental health and had previously attempted suicide, but Mr D'Andilly said he saw his son the week before his death and he was in a 'good place'. Mr D'Andilly said: 'Ev was everything. He was such a good boy. He was a thoughtful boy and so funny.' A North Yorkshire Police spokesperson said: 'The death of Evan D'Andilly is tragic and our thoughts remain with his family and friends. North Yorkshire Police will fully support the inquest, and we will await the conclusion before commenting further.'