Mother and daughter dead after being found in Blue Mountains resort pool

Ontario Provincial Police say a 34-year-old woman and her five-year-old daughter from Markham, Ont., drowned in a Blue Mountains resort pool on Tuesday.

Police said paramedics and officers were called to the Mountain Springs Resort on Grey Road 19, northwest of Collingwood, at around 7:15 p.m.

OPP said the woman and the child, who have been identified as Tiffany and Chloe Gong respectively, were taken to an area hospital where they were later pronounced dead.

Yiting Gong told Global News Wednesday evening he went to the resort with his wife and daughter for a vacation. He said Chloe wanted to go swimming, so she and Tiffany went to the pool. Ten minutes after they left, he went to the pool to join them. Yiting said he found his daughter lifeless outside of the pool and his wife still floating on the water, who he pulled out of the pool.

“I tried to (perform) CPR and then the ambulance came and they did their job,” he said.

“I tried to push, and push, and push … But they were not breathing.”

WATCH: Mother, daughter dead after being found in Blue Mountains resort pool

Yiting said he believes Tiffany died while trying to help Chloe.

“So the last thing she did was try and save her daughter,” he said.

“Yes, I think she’s the greatest person in the world.”

The Toronto District School Board sent a letter home to parents at Chloe’s school, Iroquois Junior Public School, on Wednesday to advise them of the incident.

“This has been a sombre day for all of us at the school as we mourn this tragedy. I know that you will join with all of us in expressing our deepest condolences to grieving family and friends,” Principal Marcia Pate wrote.

Police said the circumstances leading up to the call are under investigation. An OPP spokesperson said there doesn’t appear to be suspicious.

A sign posted outside the resort gate said the pool is unsupervised and children under 12 years of age are not allowed in the area unless accompanied by an adult.

An autopsy is scheduled to be performed on Wednesday.

A GoFundMe has been launched to help with funeral expenses.

— With files from Shallima Maharaj and David Shum