A man who died when his tractor rolled down a hill had just rescued a friend whose 4WD was stuck in a river.

A friend of Marlborough man Lawrence Thompson, 30, called on Sunday to say he was stuck in the Wairau River in Onamalutu so he picked up a tractor and went to help, Fairfax reported.

On his way back the tractor rolled.

His father, Peter Thompson, told Fairfax firefighters who attended the river rescue had to deal with sunstrike and he suspected that could have been why his son crashed.

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He said his son must not have thought he'd be gone long because he left the house unlocked.

The 30-year-old was born and raised in Marlborough, alongside older sisters Melissa McLaughlin and Nerolee Beldham.

​He had been an operations supervisor at Matua Wines for five years and was "someone everyone loved".

Police said Thompson's death had been referred to the coroner.