Father dies, daughter survives after water emergency at Rockwood Conservation Area: OPP

A man has died while boating with his daughter at Rockwood Conservation Area, according to provincial police.

Emergency crews were called to the area Saturday around 6:30 p.m.

Police say a 33-year-old Mississauga man and his seven-year-old daughter were pulled from the water by bystanders after the inflatable boat they were on capsized.

“Bystanders came upon it and then they went into rescue mode," said Const. Joshua Cunningham of Wellington County OPP. "We don't exactly know who was all involved with even the rescue, so we're actually imploring to the people who were there and haven't spoken to police to contact us."

A witness said he was canoeing with his family when he saw someone struggling on the water, which is when he and several others at the park tried to help and bring the man to shore.

“We realized that there was somebody in distress, so I jumped out of our canoe, swam over and then we tried to help,”  said Greg Baker.

According to Baker, it was a busy day at the beach, so lots of people tried to help however they could. However, the water was too deep to stand in, so people worked together to drag everyone ashore.

Baker said the man appeared to have been in the water for a while.

 “It was just too deep there, so we really won’t be able to do much, so he was definitely in the water for a little while before I got there," said Baker. "A lot of really heroic people jumped in there and tried to do everything they could.”

Police are still investigating the death, but are waiting for the coroners office to confirm whether the man drowned.

“If both parties had life jackets on would the situation be different? Well, it's tough to say," said Const. Cunningham. "It's certainly an option going forward we recommend for sure people wear life jackets when they’re on boats or out in the water."

 

The 33-year-old was taken to hospital and later pronounced dead, while the seven-year-old was treated at the scene.

The GRCA says boat rentals were closed for the rest of Saturday, but the rest of the conservation area remained open.

With reporting from CTV Kitchener's Colton Wiens