Man found in River Exe named locally

A 56-year-old man whose body was found in the River Exe on Saturday morning has been named locally as Kevin Osmond.

Although not yet named by police, tributes for Mr Osmond were posted on facebook yesterday evening.

Local man Steve Power dedicated a photograph to Mr Osmond with a message of condolence.

Mr Power writes: “After hearing the sad news that a body had been found in the Exe yesterday, today it transpires that the man was someone I and many others from the Exwick area knew well.

“He used to live next door to me for a while and would drink in my local pub the Thatched House in Exwick.

“I'd like to dedicate one of my photos to his memory and my thoughts and condolonces go out to his family.

“RIP Kevin. I hope you are now at peace mate.”

Mr Osmond’s body was found in the river at Exebridges at 10:15am on Saturday morning by a member of the public.

Police, fire and ambulance crews attended the incident and retrieved Mr Osmond’s body from the water.

Kerry Powell, who witnessed the events, said: "I saw several police cars and wanted to know what was going on. One side of the bridge was covered but unfortunately the side we were on was not and we were able to see the body being pulled out of the water."

Police and ambulance crews attended the incident.

Police have confirmed that the next of kin have been informed and that the death is being treated as unexplained but not suspicious.