One man is missing after two speedboats collided on Shuswap Lake north of Canoe, B.C., Sunday night.
Fred Banham, Shuswap station leader with Royal Canadian Marine Search and Rescue, said two rescue vessels were deployed around 8:15 p.m. for reports of four people in the water and a possible drowning approximately 150 metres from shore.
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“When we got on scene we discovered that two speedboats had been heading north from Salmon Arm past Canoe, heading up towards Sicamous,” he said.
“They were travelling side by side and one white vessel veered into the path of the blue vessel, which created an impact.”
Banham said the two men in the blue vessel were uninjured and swam to the rescue of a 25-year-old woman who was thrown from the white vessel after it barrel-rolled.
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She suffered neck and back injuries in the collision, according to Banham. Police said she was treated by paramedics for serious injuries and rushed to hospital.
Her companion, the man in the white vessel, is still missing. RCMP have identified him as Ryan Hartmann, 33.
Banham said two search and rescue vessels alongside two RCMP vessels scoured the waters until 1 a.m. but were unable to locate him.
Staff Sgt. Scott West, Salmon Arm RCMP detachment commander, said the search area on the lake is 250 to 350 feet in depth.
“Local search and rescue as well as air assets are being utilized this afternoon to again search the area of the lake where this incident occurred,” he said in a media release.
West said the vessels involved have been recovered and are in police custody. The cause of the crash remains under investigation.