The body of a 35-year-old man who drowned in the Slocan River last week has been recovered.
Slocan Lake RCMP responded to the reported drowning, approximately 1.5 kilometres northwest of Winlaw at approximately 5:40 p.m. on Aug. 5.
According to RCMP, the man was swimming with an acquaintance when he went under the water and did not resurface.
“The man’s acquaintance called 9-1-1 from a nearby business,” said Cpl. Jaime Moffat.
“Search and rescue used a helicopter and commenced searching the river at approximately 7:40 pm. However, due to the time of day, SAR was unable to use a boat to search for the man.”
The area where the incident occurred is a well-used swimming area, which is usually shallow with sandbars to stand on. However, the water is high right now and the undercurrent is strong.
The body was not recovered until two days later. The RCMP underwater recovery team located the man’s body in the same area where he was last seen.
The man’s name and hometown have not been released.
“Criminality is not suspected in the drowning of the man and the drowning is being investigated by BC Coroners Service,” says Cpl. Jaime Moffat.
“Slocan Lake RCMP would like to thank Search and Rescue for their assistance in searching for the man and offer their sincere condolences to the family and friends of the man.”
It’s the second drowning in the Slocan River this year, and the third in the region. On June 17, a 59-year-old man died after his kayak overturned near Perry Siding.
On July 18, a 23-year-old man drowned while swimming at Six Mile beach on Kootenay Lake.
