An unmoored sailboat was spotted on Okanagan Lake Saturday morning, Jan. 2, 2021. (Corine Bru/Facebook)

Sailboat cuts loose on Okanagan Lake

RCMP were reportedly contacted about the runaway boat Saturday morning

  • Jan. 2, 2021 12:00 a.m.

Lakeside residents may want to check their docks.

A sailboat appears to have lost its moorings and has been spotted drifting freely on Okanagan Lake Saturday.

Corine Bru shared a photo of the unmoored boat on the Vernon and Area Community Forum Facebook group from the Westside area of the lake Jan. 2.

According to a person in the area, the RCMP have been contacted about the runaway boat. However, Vernon Search and Rescue (VSAR) manager Trevor Honigman says VSAR has not received a request for assistance from police.

VSAR can’t be tasked with an assist directly; it must be through the RCMP or BC Ambulance Service, explains Honigman.

“If the RCMP know about the boat, then they sort out what resources they need in order to take care of that,” Honigman said. “We haven’t gotten a call out for it yet.”

On Monday Media Relations Officer Const. Christ Terleski said the RCMP had received a report of the adrift sailboat near Adventure Bay.

“The vessel is tarped and likely came loose of its mooring,” Terleski said. “We are hoping the owner will be located and able to retrieve their boat.”

READ MORE: Police on RCMP patrol boat pull man out of choppy waters on Skaha Lake

READ MORE: Whose boat is this on Okanagan Lake?


Brendan Shykora

Reporter, Vernon Morning Star

Email me at Brendan.Shykora@vernonmorningstar.com

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