Tributes flow for young man lost in Taupo tragedy

Tributes from his peers are flowing in for the young Wanganui man who drowned in the Waikato River, near Taupo on Sunday.
Bradley Martin, 17, got in trouble while swimming with a group of 11 others near Cherry Island.
Despite efforts to keep him afloat, his friends were not able to save him.
Bradley had travelled to Taupo with friends to celebrate the 18th birthday of one of the group.
They decided to float down to the hot pools at Spa Park, a distance of no more than 500 metres.
Bradley was found about 300m upstream from the pools after police and the coastguard carried out a search of the area.
He was a student and prefect at Wanganui High School and by mid-afternoon yesterday a Facebook page set up by friends and fellow students had almost 360 members and hundreds of comments sending prayers to his family and remembering good times shared.
The tribute page in his honour is called "R.I.P Brad Martin, ur the man and no ones going to forget you."
One contributor, Josh recorded: "It was just the other day I was talking to you dude, you had a huge smile on your face and you were being funny as always, that's how you will be remembered, as a happy and amazing athlete."
Another remembered his kindess, "You were such a big part of our Athletics Family, always making us laugh, always encouraging during training and races. Taught me how to get further in long jump and how to get better at block starts. Gonna miss you soo sooo much man. Heaven just gained a great dude!! Thoughts and prayers go out to your family and friends," Deborah said.
Bradley's track and field coach and PE teacher Mark Cornaga said he was a talented sportsman and a popular student whose absence would be deeply felt.
"He was very popular, he was into the whole school life, the stage challenge, social rugby, football ... He was always keen and committed and showed lots of guts and determination. But more than that, he was always great at helping younger kids coming in to sport, giving them feedback and lending a hand."
"He was a top-notch kid with a bright future," he said.

Last night Bradley's family asked to be allowed to grieve in privacy and prepare for his funeral on Monday.
EDITORIAL, PAGE 6