A teenager from Kamloops died while hiking in B.C.’s Southern Interior during the weekend.
Police say the 15-year-old lost her footing on some slippery rocks on Sunday evening, around 6 p.m., and fell into Akolkolex Falls.
The falls are located around 30 kilometres southeast of Revelstoke, on the east side of Upper Arrow Lake.
The girl’s step-father dove into the falls to rescue her. However, witnesses told police they didn’t see either resurface.
“With the help of a search-and-rescue helicopter, the step-father was located and transported to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries,” said Revelstoke RCMP.
“Tragically, on (Monday), July 17, the female was located deceased by RCMP and search and rescue personnel,” said Cpl. James Grandy.
Police say the BC Coroners Service has taken conduct of the investigation.
In related news, the province recently released an eight-page report on accidental drowning deaths from 2012-22.
The document said in 2022 that there were 86 drownings, with the 10-year average being 76.
Along with saying most drownings happened in July (average of 13.5), most deaths occurred in rivers and creeks (29 per cent), followed by lakes and ponds (28 per cent).
The Fraser River had the most deaths of any river or creek, followed by the Thompson River (9).
The lakes and ponds with the highest number of deaths were Okanagan Lake (30), Harrison Lake (12) and Shuswap Lake (9).
The report is available online.
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