Search and rescue crews recovered three bodies after a boat overturned in the Squamish Valley north of Vancouver during days of heavy rain and flooding.
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Search and rescue crews recovered the bodies of three people who died after a boat overturned in the Squamish Valley north of Vancouver, following days of heavy rain and flooding in the region, Sea to Sky RCMP said.
Insp. Robert Dykstra, the officer in charge of Sea to Sky RCMP, said police initially reported two deaths and a third person was missing, before a third body was recovered by Friday afternoon.
Dykstra said police received the call about the incident at about 1:50 p.m. on Thursday, but it took time for responders to reach the area because of a road washout and the condition of the swollen, fast-moving river.
Dykstra said there were originally about eight people on the boat, and police said no one is unaccounted for. He said he was not sure why the group was on the water or what caused the boat to overturn, adding, “I do believe that they ran into something. That's all I really know at this point.”
The investigation has not released details about the victims or any survivors. Dykstra called the situation “tragic,” and said people cannot always know the reasons behind what leads someone onto dangerous water during major weather events.
The tragedy followed storms that brought more than 300 millimetres of rain to some areas this week, with the Sea to Sky corridor—including Squamish and Pemberton—among the hardest hit. Dykstra said the best advice for people during major weather is to stay home and stay safe, especially near rapidly moving water, noting, “These waters are unforgiving when they're going fast.”
BC Emergency Health Services received a call at 2:48 p.m. on Thursday about the boat incident near the 15,900 block of Squamish Valley Road, and said no one was taken to hospital.
Local authorities said they had been responding under difficult access conditions. At the Squamish airport earlier Friday, three full white body bags were unloaded from a helicopter around 1:30 p.m., as members of the local search and rescue team gathered before deploying to recover the third victim.
While rainfall warnings lifted by Friday, several emergency measures remained in place. The entire village of Pemberton, about 90 kilometres north of Squamish, was still under an evacuation alert, with evacuation orders by the Lil’wat First Nation and in Zeballos on Vancouver Island also remaining. A shelter-in-place advisory for some residents about 16 kilometres north of Squamish was lifted Friday, but RCMP told residents not to drive across flooded roads and to stay out of flood zones.
Environment Canada said coastal areas of southwest B.C. faced a renewed flooding risk even after rain eased, warning of a storm surge that could raise sea levels due to high winds and “enhanced wave activity,” with elevated water levels potentially lasting into the weekend.
Sea to Sky legislator Jeremy Valeriote said he was “devastated” by the reports and that his thoughts were with the victims’ families. He said the region is “a strong and resilient community,” and said he and his team would support people as it begins recovering.
At an unrelated event on Friday, B.C. premier-designate Lorne Doerkson called the situation “very serious” and said he intended to visit the area. Wilson Williams, chairperson of the Squamish Nation, said he was “calling upon Mother Nature” to protect people in areas dealing with hazardous weather.
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