Overview
- Four people entered the Rhone near Parc de la Feyssine and were swept away by a strong current, with emergency services alerted around 5:30pm on Monday.
- Divers later recovered 21-year-old Kenzo Kies, who was pulled from the water in critical condition, declared brain dead after resuscitation efforts and subsequently died in hospital, a fact confirmed by AS Saint-Étienne.
- Kies developed at the Lyon and Saint-Étienne youth academies and joined En Avant Guingamp last year, where he was playing for the club’s reserve team.
- France is suffering a severe heatwave with temperatures near 40°C, and Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu has said about 40 heatwave-related drownings have occurred since last Thursday.
- Guingamp and Saint-Étienne have issued public tributes and offered support to Kies’s family, Saint-Étienne plans a stadium tribute next season, and the case highlights risks of swimming in banned river spots that may prompt tighter local safety measures.