Family, friends mourn loss of Scarborough paramedic

Family, friends and colleagues are reflecting on the life of a Scarborough paramedic presumed to have drowned recently in northern Ontario.

Arjanan Sivasathiyarajah was only a couple of weeks into his new job with the Weeneebayko Area Health Authority when he went missing.

It reads in part, “Arjanan had just begun his career in Kashechewan two weeks ago, but in that time, he made an immense impact on those he got to know. He will always be part of our WAHA family.”

The post also expresses gratitude to Kashechewan First Nation Chief Gaius Wesley, the community, the Canadian Rangers, Northern Stores, and volunteers who assisted with search efforts.

A GoFundMe page has since been launched, with proceeds meant to assist the family.

It reads in part that on July 3, the paramedic was involved in an incident on the river in Kashechewan, and appears to have drowned.

Kajanan Sivasathiyarajah tells Global News he was suspended in a state of disbelief when he learned his older brother was missing.

His family says he was determined to help others, and leapt at the opportunity to head north in pursuit of the career he had worked so hard for.

“In 2017, our dad had cardiac arrest and he’s unable to do anything on his own now,” said Kajanan. “I feel that the help we received at that time made a big impact on him…and he also wanted to be able to give that to others.”

Friends describe his personality as infectious, and say he was smart, sociable, loved cars, and family came first.

“He really became a part of the team quite naturally,” said Lynne Innes, Weeneebayko Area Health Authority CEO.

“He was very kind, very young, easy-going, really enjoyed the community that he was in, made a lot of friends, and certainly adopted our way of life.”