Journalist Drowned After Falling Into River While Urinating, Investigator Says

Former BBC Radio Cymru editor Aled Glynne Davies, who went missing on New Year’s Eve 2022, drowned after falling into a river while urinating in Cardiff, Wales, an investigation has determined.

On the night he disappeared, Davies, 65, had gone for a walk after returning home from dinner with his wife, Afryl. After a 400-people search, officials found his body two miles away on Jan. 4, 2023, near Cardiff Sailing Club, reports the BBC, The Sun, and The Daily Mirror.

According to the outlets, coroner Kate Robertson announced during a hearing on Monday, Sept 23, that the former editor fell into the River Taff while urinating as the zipper on his trousers was open when he was found.

The investigation found that Davies was alive when he fell into the river but died of “dry drowning,” which happens when an airway closes from choking on water without getting fluid in your lungs, per the Cleveland Clinic.

The outlets report that Afryl said during the hearing that her husband’s late-night walk was unusual, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary, as he was positive during their dinner and was looking forward to their son’s wedding.

“He had taken his house keys. That proved to me that he intended to come home that night. He was afraid of water and felt the cold terribly,” she said.

While Davies was taking medication for his health conditions, including sarcoidosis and osteoporosis, his wife said he didn’t feel depressed. Dr. Meleri Morgan, a pathologist at the University Hospital of Wales, concluded that he didn’t have enough alcohol in his system to “have had an effect on how he thought and behaved,” reports The Daily Mirror.

After his death, Davies received various tributes from family and friends, including BBC Wales Director Rhuanedd Richards.

“Aled was an innovative, energetic and passionate editor during his time leading BBC Radio Cymru between 1995 and 2006. His passing is a great loss to the broadcasting world as well as to the Welsh language,” said Richards in a statement.

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Davies’ departure from his decades-long role was announced in February 2006. At the time, he was credited for helping grow Radio Cymru’s audience “to all-time record levels.”