A 49-year-old man died in Cowichan Lake last weekend after running into trouble while trying to help family members whose boat had broken down.
Lake Cowichan RCMP said they received a report of a man yelling for help in the water about 5:50 p.m. Sunday. A search was started, but called off because of darkness.
The man’s body was found almost 24 hours later, at the shoreline approximately eight kilometres west of Youbou, not far from the Maple Grove Campground and about half a kilometre from where the man was first seen.
No life-jacket was located.
Since the man’s boat was only about six feet long with a small engine, it likely foundered when conditions worsened due to strong winds, said Lake Cowichan RCMP Sgt. Wes Olsen.
“Although it’s speculation on our part, the boat wasn’t recovered, so it’s most likely [that] the boat got swamped and sank, and that put him in the water,” Olsen said.
Police said the initial call regarding the incident indicated a man was struggling an estimated 300 to 400 metres from the shore.
“You hold out hope, but, unfortunately, based on the original call, it wasn’t looking good,” he said.
A witness was the first to respond. He took a rowboat out but was unable to find the man.
Police also received a report from the man’s family saying he was overdue and had not returned by dark.
Olsen said it turned out the family had already been assisted and the man did not have to venture onto the lake.
“Unbeknownst to him, they got towed in.”
Lake Cowichan Mayor Ross Forrest said there had not been a drowning in the lake for some time. Olsen said there have been drownings in the Cowichan River but not the lake since he came to the area in 2013.
“We’ve got a big lake that’s used by a lot of people, but when you hear things like this, it really hits home what can happen,” Forrest said.
“I know this lake, and late in the afternoon when the wind blows up, it certainly changes our conditions out there.
“If you’re not used to it or don’t understand it, it’s obviously potentially dangerous.”
The B.C. Coroners Service is investigating. The man’s name has not been released.
