Search continues for man missing after canoe sank
Non-swimmer had no life-jacket and was fishing alone, witnesses tell OPP
A search-and-rescue effort turned into a grim body recovery mission Monday after a man disappeared into Lake Erie when the canoe he was riding in capsized.
It was also still unclear why the canoe suddenly sank near Kingsville around 5 p.m. Sunday.
“We just don’t know why he capsized,” Essex OPP Const. Jim Root said Monday. “His friends and acquaintances were on shore and witnessed the canoe capsize, and then called police immediately. They watched and didn’t see him resurface.”
The man was fishing alone when his canoe tipped over on Lake Erie east of County Road 45. Police said the man, who couldn’t swim, had no safety gear in the boat.
“It was my understanding he was a non-swimmer not wearing a lifejacket,” said Root.
The 25-year-old man’s friends watched from shore as he went under the water. Root said it appears there was nothing they could have done.
“It was far enough out that he couldn’t be rescued by his friends,” said Root.
He said the man was a Mexican national living in Kingsville.
Alberto Bernal Acero, the Mexican consul in Leamington, said the man’s brother also lives in the area and has contacted family in Mexico to let them know what happened.
Acero said the consulate will help to ensure the man’s body, if recovered, is returned home to Mexico.
He said the consulate has also been in contact with the man’s employer. The man worked for a farmer in Essex County, but Acero wouldn’t be more specific.
Kingsville firefighters, Essex Windsor EMS, Essex County OPP and members of the Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre from Trenton all responded to the initial call around 5 p.m. Sunday and the search went on through the night.
On Monday, provincial police set up a mobile command unit at Leamington Marina to co-ordinate the search for the missing boater. An OPP helicopter and dive team came in from Orillia. The helicopter could be seen buzzing overheard around the marina throughout the day Monday. The Essex County and Chatham OPP marine units were also involved.
Root said the tragedy is a good reminder that people should always have the proper safety gear with them on the water.
“Have your safety equipment including life-jackets on board, even if you’re just going for a short trip or not far from land,” he said.
“It’s always better to be safe than sorry.”