A school has been left "devastated" by the death of a pupil who died after entering the river near Fernhill.
Christopher Kapessa, 13, died on Monday, July 1, after getting into difficulty in the water after entering the River Cynon between Mountain Ash and Cwmbach at 5.40pm.
He was pronounced dead following an extensive rescue operation involving police, firefighters, paramedics, and an emergency services helicopter.
Hundreds of tributes have been paid to Christopher since his death with flowers and messages left on the railings near the scene of the tragedy from friends and family.
Now a statement on behalf of Mountain Ash Comprehensive School , where Christopher was a year eight pupil, has paid tribute to the teenager.
It said: "The whole school has been devastated by the tragic loss of Christopher. Christopher was a well-known and popular member of our school. He was always full of energy, with a great sense of humour, who enjoyed making people laugh.
"Christopher was a caring friend to pupils within his year group and the wider school community. He will be greatly missed by us all."
They added: "Our sincere and heartfelt condolences go out to Christopher's family and friends at this difficult time."
Since Christopher's death his friends from school Mountain Ash juniors under-13s came together to hold a match in his memory at the school with a minute's silence before the game as a mark of respect.
The match raised a total of £1,000 which will be added to the community's donations to Christopher's family, with £8,000 and £500 raised by two fundraising groups respectively.
Pupils from Mountain Ash Comprehensive walked up Pen-Y-Fan on Sunday in another fundraising event more are planned in the coming weeks.
