A man drowned in a pond at King’s Park Monday night trying to save his family’s dog, say Winnipeg police.
Emergency personnel were called to the scene at about 9:30 p.m.
King’s Park is just south of the University of Manitoba.
Police said a 58-year-old man was out walking with family when the dog decided to take a swim in one of the park’s ponds.
The dog “was having difficulty swimming, so the man went in to rescue the pet,” said Cst. Tammy Skrabek.
However, the man got tangled up in thick weeds and soft mud. The pond is deep, she said, and two men went into the water to try to save him.
By the time emergency personnel arrived, “two males had come out of the water, they had pulled a third male out of the water who was … not conscious at the time he was removed.”
The two men went into the water on their own and did perform CPR, said Skrabek.
The man was taken to hospital where he was pronounced dead, she said.
One of the men who pulled the victim out of the water was also taken to hospital in stable condition. The third man was treated at the scene and did not need medical attention.
According to Linda Bouchard-Toderan, who was helping search for the dog, named Smokey, was found by the victim’s family Tuesday morning.
“I stayed and looked for Smokey ’till 11 p.m.,” she said. “I did see him once last night but he ran off.
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The city said a small part of the off-leash dog park borders the pond, which is a decorative water feature that was filled at the end of June.
“Prior to filling the pond, rooted vegetation was removed through mechanical means and with a controlled burn. Surface floating aquatic weeds are not removed and are a natural part of the pond’s ecosystem,” Ken Allen of Public Works told Global News in an email.
Allen added the pond is not meant for swimming and is marked with two signs.
“There are two signs posted by the pond which state no wading, no swimming, no power boats, no dumping.”
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