Edward Sun, an aspiring artist, recent immigrant to Canada from China, and an excellent ESL student, died after diving with a buddy from a swim raft at Alice Lake. He never made it back to the surface to breathe.
The Province has learned the details around the death of Sun, a 17-year-old Bodwell High School student who died Saturday afternoon during a dormitory field trip to the popular swimming area near Squamish.
Lian Dun (Edward) Sun had only “rudimentary” swimming ability, but he decided to venture out to a raft about 25 metres from the beach, principal Stephen Smith told The Province Monday morning.
Sun was one of eight male students, aged 17-20, who were swimming in the “buddy system” and supervised by their hall adviser, who is in his mid 20s, Smith said.
Sun and his swimming partner dove off the raft to swim to shore underwater, but when the partner made it to shore he was alarmed that Sun had not come up. The swimming group started to search for Sun, and then one 18-year-old student who was standing on the swim raft noticed him on the bottom of the lake, immediately dove down and brought him to shore. It’s not known how long Sun was submerged, but he was unconscious, Smith said.
The student who brought Sun to shore – a Caucasian male – started to administer CPR, which he had learned in a babysitting course, Smith said.
Paramedics had been called and arrived about 20-30 minutes later. It’s believed Sun’s heartbeat was revived at some point on the beach. He was airlifted to B.C. Children’s Hospital and died early Sunday morning, with his mother Hua Sun, at his side. Hua Sun and Edward had immigrated together to the Vancouver area recently.
On Sunday a number of Bodwell’s 290 summer semester students came to the school’s library where they grieved for Sun and wrote messages at a memorial for him.
“You could have heard a pin drop,” Smith said. “Students were quietly offering their respects.”
On Sunday evening 90 students held a candlelight vigil for Sun in the student dormitory.
Classes have been suspended Monday morning, and Hua Sun will be taken to Alice Lake with school staff so she can try to understand what happened, Smith said.
Smith said the school is focusing on supporting students and Sun’s mother now, but is also participating with the B.C. Coroner in an investigation of the death.
“All our attention now is dealing with the human emotions (and then) we have to look at what might have gone wrong and whether this could have been prevented,” Smith said. “I understand (Sun’s) swimming was fairly rudimentary, and that is something we are concerned about. He felt comfortable enough to get out to the raft … and the mentor (hall adviser) felt he was competent enough.”
Sun had first attended another area school in September 2009, and transferred to Bodwell in January 2010, Smith said. He was excelling through his ESL courses and ready to switch into the school’s regular program.
He chose to enrol in extra art courses, and was known as an aspiring artist, Smith said.
Smith said in Bodwell’s 19-year history, this is the first time a student has died while involved in school activities. Weekend outdoor activities are a big part of Bodwell’s program, and the school “is determined” to continue providing quality and safe education, Smith said.
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