We’re Currently in the Midst of National Drowning Prevention Week and the reminders on how to be safe near bodies of water comes at an important time for residents living in Northwestern BC.
July has seen a pair of high profile river related tragedies as Thomas Kelly disappeared while fishing in the Skeena River and after doing a comprehensive search for a few days, the local RCMP have since suspended their efforts to locate him.
And as for the other notable incident, that occurred on the Kitimat River, close to the Nalbeelah Creek along Highway 37 at around the same time.
It’s not known exactly what happened that led to the drowning, but what is known is that a 79 year old Kitimat Resident was found after he drowned, where he was then able to be recovered and returned to Kitimat.
And in the wake of that tragic death, Kitimat’s Mayor has spoken on where local residents can find tips for staying safe on the River.
“Kitimat does have some very good safety measures and safety recommendations for being on the river and I believe you can go to the District of Kitimat website and you can find it on there, or if you go, I think, to the chamber’s website, probably over the tourism of, you know, how to be safe when you’re on the river, but unfortunately yeah, accidents do happen and y’know, our thoughts go out to the Family and Friends of the person who lost their life there” - Phil Germuth, Mayor of Kitimat
Other municipalities like Prince Rupert have also joined in on the highlighting of the means to stay safe when near a major body of water, be it natural or otherwise.
Some really important safety tips include never go swimming along, always keep an eye on your friend that you’ve gone swimming with and always be ready to call for help in case of an emergency.
And for people looking to hear more water safety advice in person, they can go to places like Kitimat’s Sam Lindsay Aquatic Centre throughout this week.