A man who went missing in the Thames River near Kingston yesterday has died.

On Twitter, a spokesperson for London Fire Brigade (LFB) Kingston confirmed that there had been a "loss of life" in the river despite the actions of multiple emergency and rescue service who were called to attend the scene.

"Tragic events in Kingston last night with the loss of a life in the River Thames.

"Local Crews searched for over two hours but were sadly unsuccessful in locating the casualty," the spokesperson said on Wednesday (July 24).

They added praise for the other emergency response teams who worked with LFB in Kingston during the search and urged residents to exercise caution near the river:

"A huge thank you to our partner agencies: MPS, LAS and RNLI for their assistance. PLEASE don't risk it!!"

On Tuesday evening, around 8.30pm, reports emerged that an unidentified individual had gone missing on the stretch of the river near Kingston High Street.

The Met Police (MPS) released a statement regarding the incident, which was one of three reports of individuals going missing after entering the Thames river amid the ongoing heatwave hitting London this week.

A spokesperson for Kingston MPS said:

"Police on scene at the Thames, kingston with @Ldn_Ambulance, @LondonFire and @NPASRedhill to reports of a male in the river."

On Wednesday, London Ambulance Service confirmed they had attended the scene in Kingston on Tuesday, but were subsequently "stood down" and had not treated anyone.

A spokesperson for LAS told the Comet:

"We were called at 8:36pm yesterday (23 July) to reports of an incident on High Street, Kingston Upon Thames.

"We sent an ambulance crew, an incident response officer, an advanced paramedic and a medic in a car to the scene.

"We didn't treat any patients and we were stood down."

The Met Police meanwhile said they were continuing to search for the missing person in Kingston — one of three searches for people to have gone missing in the Thames River during the last 24 hours.

"River searches continue today to locate three people reported in the Thames at #Shadwell, #Kingston and #Waterloo," a spokesperson for the MPS said on Twitter Wednesday.

Meanwhile, the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) also offered their thoughts following the spate of incidents surrounding the Thames River.

On Twitter, the RNLI said:

"Last night we were very saddened to learn that 3 swimmers had gone missing in the Thames and a man had also died in Gloucestershire.

"We urge everyone to #RespectTheWater during the heatwave and take care. Choose a lifeguarded beach/pool & #FloatToLive if you get into difficulty."

The national lifeboat body also offered specific advise for those considering swimming in the Thames in London, issuing a warning about the river's "strong currents" and "high tides":

"With temperatures in London expected to reach 38C by Thursday, please be especially careful if you're looking to cool off in the capital.

"Our Thames crews respond to 100s of incidents each year, with many people caught out by the strong currents and high tides on the river," a spokesperson for RNLI said.

Advice on staying safe in River Thames is available here: to: https://www.kingston.gov.uk/info/200272/environment/956/riverside_safety