The City of Edmonton demonstrated proper lifejacket fittings, basic swimming skills and required safety equipment Tuesday as part of National Drowning Prevention Week.
The third week of July tends to be the most common time for a drowning across Canada, according to Jonathan Kusyanto, executive director of the Lifesaving Society.
“We specifically chose this week because it is the peak of summer and it’s typically when most Canadians are out enjoying various parks and lakes,” said Kusyanto.
Zain Haji, a city park ranger with the marine unit, said there have already been 55 rescues on the river and that river usage went up 200 per cent from 2021 to 2022.
Across Canada, 70 per cent of all drownings happen on open water like lakes and rivers, according to the Lifesaving Society.
People between 20 and 34 years old, especially men, have the highest risk of drowning, the society reports.
On Tuesday, crews were searching the North Saskatchewan River for Austin Laporte, a 20-year-old man from Beaumont who is believed to have been swept away near the Voyageur Park boat launch in Devon Sunday night.
Kusyanto said rivers are particularly unpredictable bodies of water.
“A lot of the time, the surface speed currents of the water doesn’t always indicate the true speed of undercurrents and the debris that are there,” he said.
The nature of rivers also makes it harder to search for missing people, said Jamie Amiel, water rescue training instructor with Edmonton Fire Rescue Services.
“It’s very difficult to respond on the river because it’s such a dynamic and unpredictable environment,” he said, adding the moving water makes it a lot harder to locate swimmers who slip under.
RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Troy Savinkoff said in a river, the search area gets bigger and bigger as time passes, further complicating the effort.
“We’re still checking the banks of the water — there’s still hope that he could be on the banks but ultimately boats in the water would mean a recovery in the water at this point,” said Savinkoff.
Haji said last year there were more than 7,500 compliance checks done to make sure people out on the water had the required safety equipment on board.
He explained while boating, there needs to be a bucket that could be used to bail a vessel, a flashlight, a whistle, a throw line and every person on board needs to have a life jacket.
He added many people are surprised to find out their paddleboard or kayak counts as a “vessel” and that they require these items under the Canada Shipping Act and the Small Vessel Regulations.
“If it floats, it’s a ‘boat,’” said Haji.
The Lifesaving Society suggests the following water safety tips:
- Always keep an eye on young children around the water – even backyard pools and bathtubs – keep the children within arms reach and don’t use your phone or tablet when supervising
- Use a properly fitted lifejacket
- Don’t use drugs or alcohol around water, as they can impair balance, judgement and reflexes
- Know your limits before going swimming, especially in open water as it behaves differently than a pool
- Swim with someone else, as many fatal drownings occur when people are swimming alone
- Swim only in designated beach areas
Austin Laporte, who was swept away in the river near Devon, is described as five-feet-eight-inches tall with brown hair and brown eyes, last seen wearing black shorts and no shirt.
Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to call Parkland RCMP at 825-220-7267.