Two men in their 20s died Saturday evening after their canoe capsized approximately 100 metres from shore in Bob’s Lake, on Mice Point Lane in South Frontenac.
A three-year-old child, who was with the two men in the boat and who is the son of one of the two drowning victims, survived because he was wearing a life-jacket. Bystanders in nearby cottages were able to safely pull the child out of the water.
The child’s father, 29-year-old Justin Thomas Butts of Kingston, and the second victim, 23-year-old Daniel MacDonald, also of Kingston, were friends, according to the OPP. They were not wearing life-jackets.
The OPP were called to the scene around 8:45 p.m. on Saturday when two adult men went under water. Fire services was also on scene and civilians also participated in the rescue effort, which ceased due to nightfall. The OPP Underwater Search and Recovery Unit located the victims’ bodies at about 1 p.m. the next day.
The child was taken to Kingston General Hospital for observation and later released to family members.
“There’s no real outside factor; we think they lost balance and the canoe capsized on the three of them, and they all went into the water,” said Const. Roop Sandhu. “One of them was believed to be a good swimmer but (we’re) not sure about the other one, at least according to family.”
Police suspect the two men drowned when one tried to help the other, who was struggling in the water.
Bob’s Lake is located about 123 kilometres southwest of Ottawa.
