A pile of Christmas gifts lie unopened.

A normal Christmas Day scene, you might think. But this is December 28 and to the Thompson family a symbol of tragedy.

It is also a reminder that one of their members failed to arrive for the traditional Christmas lunch - 43-year-old Kevin.

How Mr. Thompson's body came to end up floating face down in The Scaur on Boxing Day remains a mystery to the devastated family. A keen boatsman and fisherman, he was familiar with the unpredictable waters around Bermuda.

"I don't know what happened to him, but I do know that water is like a magnet - it draws you to it," his brother Earlston Anthony Thompson told The Royal Gazette.

"I know that my brother was a strong swimmer - I don't know what went wrong. I know strange things happen on the water."

Kevin Thompson had lived on his boat the Blue Rodeo for the last three months.

He was last seen by a neighbour, who could not understand why his dinghy was still tied to his 28ft boat when he was on shore. A Police report stated that Mr. Thompson's body was found by an off-duty Police officer, who had a boat moored near his at 2 p.m. The officer noticed what appeared to be a man's body floating face down in the water.

Marine Police were called to the scene and an on call physician officially declared the time of death at 3.45 p.m.

It was estimated that his body was in the water for about 48 hours before it was discovered.

Mr. Earlston Thompson said his brother had been expected at their mother's house for Christmas lunch. "We thought it was Kevin being Kevin - a free spirit. He always had to be at one with nature."

Mr. Thompson said he was on his way to feed his sister-in-law's dog when he heard the news that something was amiss.

"Someone pulled me over and said there was something wrong near my brother's boat. I drove down Scaur Lane and an officer asked whether that was my brother's boat."

He said the detective told him that they had found someone thought to be his brother floating in the water. Now the family is awaiting the pathologist report. Of his brother, Mr. Thompson said he was one of the kindest people around.

"He was a kind-hearted person, he would give you his heart and then go around looking for it. It is sad to know that something like this has happened to him."

Mr. Thompson said that he had been married and divorced twice, but he had no children.

He also said that he was a tradesman, who could turn his hand to almost anything.

"He was an electrician, a tiler, a heavy machinery operator and was also a mechanic," his brother said. "He did all sorts of things within the construction field."

A family member who preferred not to be named said that it was all a little too much to take in. "Obviously it comes as a shock. My heart goes out to his mother who I understand is off the Island," said the family member.

"She just lost her husband a few years ago and now she has to go through the whole process again. I really feel for her and the rest of the family."