Family, friends, classmates and hockey buddies of the two popular Langley teens presumed drowned on Nicola lake have launched a fundraising campaign to bring a sonar machine in from the U.S. to search for the bodies.
Police and search and rescue teams suspended the search for Austin Kingsborough, 17, and Brendan Wilson, 18, after four-and-a-half days, said Mission RCMP spokeswoman Const. Tracy Dunsmore.
“We feel that our efforts have been exhausted,” she said, adding that included an air search and sonar equipment to assist divers.
The teens, who knew the lake well, are missing and presumed drowned, Dunsmore said.
Kingsborough and Wilson had been camping at a family property and were reported missing after they failed to return for dinner on April 21.
A half-submerged canoe was found at the north end of the lake, which is subject to high winds that are dangerous to small craft, and it’s presumed the boat flipped. Searchers retrieved a hat, a headlamp and a shoe that family confirmed belonged to the boys.
The police decision midday Friday to end the search was “a pretty low moment for everybody,” said Scott Lebus, a family friend of the Wilsons who was speaking on behalf of the parents.
The family is planning to continue the search until they recover the bodies, he said.
“We’ve accepted that they’re gone and now we’re looking for closure,” said Lebus.
The family is paying for an Idaho couple, Gene and Sandy Ralston, to bring a large, sophisticated sonar tool they’ve used successfully to search for missing bodies after other tragedies. The couple will search for free, but ask that their travelling expenses be covered, said Lebus.
Dunsmore said RCMP would support the family’s plans.
Friends have been posting messages on social media about the teens, avid ice and ball hockey players, using the hashtag #prayfortheboys, and a banner with that phrase and their initials, A.K. and B.W., has been posted at Langley Secondary School.
A Facebook page called Pray for the Boys has been created.
Donations can be made at any CIBC branch by quoting the Langley Rotary Club trust fund, branch no. 02120, account no. 1000314, said Lebus.
Any funds collected will help the family defray the costs of their vigil at the lake and funeral costs, he said.
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