FRIENDS in Okehampton have paid tribute to one of the town's most respected residents, who died when he fell into a lake at a friend's barbecue in West Devon last weekend.

Dave Jamieson, 49, who lived in Okehampton, was at a private barbecue in Lifton when the tragedy happened.

He fell after a fence gave way. A women in her 30s and from Okehampton also fell. She was rescued and airlifted to Derriford Hospital where her condition this week was described as 'comfortable'.

The tragedy happened at Tinhay Lake, owned by the neighbouring Arundell Arms and up to 90 ft deep in places.

Tributes to Mr Jamieson, who worked in and around the town for more than 30 years, have poured in from some of his closest friends and employees.

Lifelong friend Martin Adkins described Mr Jamieson as 'the sort of guy who would do anything for anybody'.

He said: 'Dave Jamieson and I have known each other for over 35 years — we had a mutual group of friends and a love of motorcycles.

'Over the years I attended his wedding to Tracey and celebrated the birth of his son Luke.

'He was a fantastic friend who would drop everything to help his mates. He's often helped me with motorcycle problems — he was never happier than when tinkering with a motorbike. Dave had a large circle of friends — he will be greatly missed by everyone.'

Good friend Gideon Hutt said: 'He was one of those blokes everyone liked and he was well known around Okehampton.

'Dave knew a lot of businesses and had worked as a welder, bike builder and mechanic — he was very well respected.

'Everyone who met him never had a bad word to say about him.

'He was the sort of bloke you could ring in the middle of the night and he would do anything for you, anytime of the day — nothing was too much trouble.

'He was like a brother to me, he will be well missed by everyone.'

Mr Jamieson had lived in Okehampton and surrounding area for most of his life.

A keen motorcycle enthusiast, he attended shows all around the country.

Former employer of Mr Jamieson and owner of North Street Motors in North Tawton, Alec Ranford, said a lot of people will miss 'a very genuine man'.

He said: 'He was a great mate, always there for people. There were no undertones with him — what you saw, was what you got.'

Owner of Exbourne Garage, where Mr Jamieson also worked, Richard Brock, said: 'Nothing was ever too much trouble, he was just a nice guy to know.

'He was always willing to go out of his way and help.

'He was also a perfectionist with what he did and was very good at it.

Emergency services were called to the scene just before 1am on Sunday, August 9.

Supt Sarah Sharp said: 'The difficulty with any quarry water is that it's extremely deep and extremely cold, and usually with very steep sides.

'It was a very difficult location to access and it was dark as well, so it was a very difficult rescue scenario.'

Okehampton mayor Cllr David Weekes, a friend of Mr Jamieson, said: 'Dave was one of the good guys. He would do anything for anyone and what has happened is such a tragic thing.'