A man died Saturday after trying to save a child who got into trouble while swimming in Chehalis Lake, located off a remote forest service outside of Harrison Mills in the Fraser Valley.
The incident occurred at the Skwellepil Creek 4x4-access-only campsite, roughly 30 kilometres up Chehalis Creek forest service road.
Multiple witnesses said the man swam out to help a child experiencing trouble about 20 feet from shore.
The man himself got into trouble and ended up sinking to the bottom of the lake, and another man swam out and brought the child to shore.
Nearby campers reacted quickly, teaming up to retrieve the man, who was an estimated 15 to 20 feet below the surface, as another man called for help using a handheld satellite communication device.
Family members gave the man chest compressions for about an hour before the paramedics arrived via helicopter.
One B.C. Emergency Health Services helicopter with four paramedics attended, as well as one ambulance with three paramedics, two search-and-rescue vehicles, and multiple RCMP vehicles.
The paramedics who arrived via helicopter were forced to land across a creek from the campsite and make their way through the water.
The man was pronounced dead at the scene.
