Fatal drowning in Peachland

A West Kelowna man, age 76, drowns while swimming in Okanagan Lake.

Emergency crews were unable to resuscitate a West Kelowna resident who was unresponsive when pulled from Okanagan Lake on Friday afternoon in Peachland.

The swimmer, age 76,  was pulled from the waters off the 4000 block of Beach Avenue on Friday shortly after 3 p.m.

The man’s wife had noticed he had not resurfaced while out swimming and called for help.

“Several minutes later a paddle boarder located the man below the water’s surface and with the assistance of a group of bystanders brought the unresponsive man to shore,” said Cst. Jesse O’Donaghey.

“When emergency services arrived on scene several bystanders, which included an off duty nurse, were performing life saving measures on the victim. Sadly, the 76-year-old West Kelowna man passed away at the scene.”

Kelowna RCMP Sgt. Patti Cook added: “The West Kelowna RCMP would like to recognise all those who jumped into action, without hesitation, to pull the man from the water and perform CPR.”

The name of the West Kelowna man has not yet been released.

Kelowna Capital News