Search crews in Maple Ridge are still trying to find a 26-year-old woman who is missing and presumed dead after a boat capsized on Alouette Lake.
The woman was one of four people on the boat when it flipped Sunday afternoon, around 3 p.m. The three others, two men and one woman, managed to swim to shore and were treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
“The three people with hypothermia were transported to Maple Ridge Hospital for further treatment,” said Howard Exner, the deputy fire chief with Maple Ridge Fire and Rescue.
“All we know is that the boat got into trouble when they were out, returning to the boat launch and for some reason the boat sank.”
Exner said Alouette Lake is very cold and very deep and Gold Creek, which feeds into the lake, was moving very quickly due to the recent rain.
Jennifer McShane was camping with her family by the lake when she heard her sister shout that there were two naked people in their campsite.
“As I was running up to them, I was assessing it quickly and I realized they needed help,” she said. “So I put my arms around the young girl and I asked her what her name was. I realized she was in shock.”
“So we were walking over to our campsite, and as we were walking over I ripped off my sweatshirt and put it over her as she was stark naked, as was the gentleman.”
They brought them over to the campsite and put blankets over them. McShane then jumped in the car and went to get help as there is no cell service in the area.
She said the three people told her the boat started taking on water and when it reached their knees they decided to jump in the water and swim for shore.
“All they were really saying at first was ‘our boat has flipped over, there were four of us, we don’t know where one friend is, he made it out though. But the girl she drowned, we know she drowned’,” said McShane.
She picked up the third person, a man, by the side of the road as she was on her way to call 9-1-1.
“None of them were wearing life jackets unfortunately,” she said. “I spoke with the fellow I found on the side of the road and took to headquarters. From what he told myself, there were life jackets on board, however, none of them were wearing them unfortunately.”
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