A George Washington University student’s trip to South Africa turned tragic when he got caught up in surf and drowned, his school and local police said.
The body of 19-year-old Nicholas Upton was found Friday afternoon.
Around 11 p.m. (5 p.m. ET) the previous Sunday, Upton had gone swimming with five fellow students along the Wild Coast near Coffee Bay, a small, remote seaside town about 325 miles (525 miles) northeast of Port Elizabeth and 275 miles southwest of Durban. He’d been on break with 10 other students staying at a holiday lodge there, according to the National Sea Rescue Institute, a charity devoted to saving lives in waters around South Africa.
“He went missing in the surf after appearing to get into difficulty in the surf line,” said the group, known as Sea Rescue. “Others from the group attempted to find him and staff from the resort were called to join the search, but after all, efforts were unsuccessful.”
Authorities were alerted, though the rough terrain and remote location meant first responders didn’t arrive until around 10 a.m. the next day.
Early on, bad weather hindered efforts to locate Upton using helicopters and other aircraft that had taken off from communities along the South African coast.
Body found 3 miles from where he presumed drowned
By Monday, Sea Rescue announced “the teenager is missing and he is now presumed to have drowned.”
Confirmation came four days later when a private helicopter taking part in the search spotted Upton about 3 miles from where he was last seen, police brigadier Prevor Mey said. Local divers then recovered his body.
An autopsy is expected to be conducted Monday, according to police.
Dean: ‘He will be missed’
Upton was from Redding, Connecticut, a Fairfield County town of about 9,000 people about 60 miles northeast of New York and 55 miles southwest of Hartford.
At George Washington University in Washington, Upton was a junior majoring in international affairs at the Elliott School.
Besides his studies, he belonged to the Colonials’ rowing team and was a member of the Kappa Alpha fraternity.
His frat brothers and other members of the school awaited and prayed for his safe return, even holding a vigil Wednesday night.
“We will be working together with Nick’s family on plans to honor Nick and keep his memory alive,” Kappa Alpha said in a Facebook post.
Upton had been in South Africa for a study abroad program out of Cape Town, according to his university.
“Our hearts go out to Nick’s family and friends,” George Washington’s Dean of Student Affairs Peter Konwerski said in a statement. “He touched many during his time at GW, and he will be missed.”
