Province rejects calls to install rescue equipment at B.C. lakes, despite surge in drownings
British Columbia has seen a significant increase in drownings this year, with 42 deaths compared to 27 last year, prompting a group of friends to advocate for improved water safety measures like life jacket loaner systems, better signage, and rescue buoys at provincial lakes. However, the province has rejected these calls despite the alarming statistics.
Why it matters
This highlights a critical public safety issue in British Columbia, where a rise in drownings is met with provincial inaction, potentially putting more lives at risk and sparking debate over government responsibility and citizen advocacy.
B.C. has recorded a spike in drownings, with 42 people dying so far this year.
There were 27 deaths in the same time frame last year, according to the B.C. and Yukon Lifesaving Society.
Lenea Grace, the executive director for the society, said the increase is alarming.
“We want to equip British Columbians to make safe choices when they're on the water,” Grace said.
Two people fell off their paddleboards and drowned at Browning Lake in Murrin Provincial Park at the end of May. (Alanna Kelly/CBC) In some of the deaths, Grace said, people were not wearing a life jacket.
“An average of over 40 per cent of drownings in B.C. involve non-use of a life jacket,” she said.
In late May, a couple died after falling from a paddleboard at Browning Lake near Squamish, at Murrin Provincial Park.
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