An inquest into the death of an 18-year-old Islander who tragically died whilst on holiday in France at the start of the year has concluded that his death was by misadventure, with alcohol being a contributing factor.
Kieron Flux from Newport is said to have been ‘frozen solid’ after he was found on Wednesday 7th January by Police in gorges above La Daille in Val-d’Isère – a region of the Rhône-Alpes in southeastern France. He had gone missing during a night out after consuming at least 6 bottles of beer earlier in the evening.
Today’s inquest at the Isle of Wight Courts in Newport heard how the teenager, who was on holiday with his father and family friends, joined a pub crawl with Joseph Craig but became separated as the night went on.
In a statement read out at the inquest, Mr Craig said Kieron became involved in an argument with a group from Wales and that he (Craig) had to stop one of them from attacking Kieron.
“They wanted a fight, I do not remember how it was resolved. Kieron went out for a cigarette. The same man who I held back punched me on the nose and left. Kieron saw me holding my nose and asked what had happened.
“Kieron went off, my only recollection was being back on the bus to the chalet. Kieron didn’t come back that night but no one missed him until the next morning.”
The alarm was raised by Kieron’s father, Wayne, after he had returned from skiing on the slopes to discover Kieron had not returned from his night out. CCTV at the resort captured the former Carisbrooke College student getting off a bus at the wrong location and later that day a search and rescue helicopter found his body.
Caroline Sumeray, Her Majesty’s Senior Coroner for the Isle of Wight, said that had Kieron not have been intoxicated with alcohol, she does not think he would have ended up getting lost and dying.
She said:
“I have heard that he was intoxicated. He had gone on the shuttle bus and got off at the wrong end of town, he was disorientated and wasn’t dressed warmly and subsequently got lost in the snow and developed hypothermia and died”.
Ms Sumeray informed Kieron’s mother, Diane Haines, that some of her son’s organs had been retained without explanation by French authorities and that she would be in contact with the Foreign Office.
These organs included part of his heart, his oesophagus and bladder.
In response, Ms Haines said:
“So I buried him with most of his organs missing”.
Ms Sumeray recorded death by misadventure with the cause of death as hypothermia contributed to by intoxication.
