A man in his 70s is dead after a boat overturned off Hornby Island on Tuesday night. The other man in the boat was able to make it back to shore and call for help.
The two men were in a small aluminum motor boat when it capsized just before 5 p.m., Hornby Island Fire Chief Doug Chinnery said. The man in his 70s was unable to stay afloat without a lifejacket.
His friend, who is in his 60s, dragged the man to Norris Rock, which is 500 metres from Toby Island, off the southern tip of Hornby Island, Chinnery said.
The friend either righted the boat and rowed to shore or swam while holding onto the boat, Chinnery said. Once on shore, the man found a construction crew who called 911, he said. The fire department received a call around 5 p.m. about a man with hypothermia and another man who was possibly deceased.
The first arriving medical crew looked after the survivor. The Canadian Coast Guard was dispatched, but was about 25 minutes away, Chinnery said, so the second medical crew boarded a boat from Hornby Island Diving to find the man on Norris Rock.
The man was found unresponsive.
“They got him into the boat and worked on him on the way back to Ford’s Cove Marina, where the B.C. Air Ambulance crew and our doctor met them to continue resuscitation efforts,” Chinnery said. The man was pronounced dead at the marina.
“We are all saddened by the loss of this gentleman, and our hearts go out to his friends, family, and community,” Chinnery wrote in a post on the department’s Facebook page.
The survivor was taken to North Island Hospital in Courtenay. Earlier information that no one was taken to hospital was incorrect.
It appears the men came to Hornby Island on a day trip from Vancouver Island, Chinnery said.
Comox Valley RCMP are investigating what caused the boat to capsize. The seas were not rough on Tuesday evening, Chinnery said.
The boat did not have a motor when it was towed back to the marina, and Chinnery said it’s unclear when it came off.
The B.C. Coroners Service confirmed it is investigating the death of a man in his late 70s.
This is the second fatal boating accident in Vancouver Island waters in the past three days. A man in his 50s died and two people were taken to hospital after a boat fire and explosion at the North Saanich Marina on Sunday afternoon.
One boat and a fuel dock were destroyed. The fire started on the boat and spread to the fuel dock, RCMP confirmed Wednesday. Portions of the boat were raised and examined by RCMP and fire investigators.
RCMP have said the fire does not appear to be suspicious.
WorkSafe B.C. is also investigating because one of the two people injured was a marina employee.
On Wednesday, RCMP spokesman Cpl. Chris Manseau praised all those who jumped in to help, including an off-duty police officer, off-duty firefighter, an off-duty paramedic and the marina staff member who shut off the fuel pumps before fleeing the dock, likely preventing further injury.
The RCMP is asking any witnesses to the explosion or anyone with video footage to contact the Sidney-North Saanich RCMP at 250-656-3931.
