A POPULAR student has died in a scuba diving accident in Chile.

Paul Harris, 23, who grew up in Blean and went to Simon Langton Boys Grammar School, was diving in a lagoon when he failed to surface.

He was pulled from the water but efforts to revive him failed.

A space science graduate of Kent University, he was on an activity excursion with a group of other students when the accident happened. His parents, Charles and Ann Harris, of Bourne Lodge Close, Blean, were away in Edinburgh when they were told of the tragedy.

His mother said: "Paul was studying for his PhD at university in Preston and jumped at the chance to go to Chile to visit the Gemini space telescope.

"Apparently, he and his group got the opportunity to have a go at scuba diving. They had spent the morning training with instructors and were then allowed to dive on their own.

"We have been told the water was only about 8ft deep and Paul was a strong swimmer, so we don’t know how it happened. We have been assured there has been a full investigation and no faults were found with the equipment."

Mr Harris had recently started his PhD in Lancashire but still had many friends in the Canterbury area who have been shocked and saddened by his tragic death.

Standing 6ft 7ins tall, he was a keen sportsman but considered something of a gentle giant because of his warm and friendly nature.

Mrs and Mrs Harris, who have a 25-year-old daughter, Melanie, hope their son’s body may be returned home next week so they can start organising the funeral.

Mr Harris, a retired scientist and former lecturer at Canterbury College, added: "He was thrilled to have got the chance to go to Chile and had been e-mailing us with pictures of the sights and what he was doing. He was obviously really enjoying it.

"It is very difficult to come to terms with what has happened but we are very proud of his achievements."