1 drowned, another missing following separate incidents at B.C. bodies of water

UPDATE — June 17, 2025: The body of the man who drowned at Cabin Lake has been recovered, according to the West Vancouver Police Department and B.C. Coroners Service. 

ORIGINAL STORY:

One person is presumed drowned and another is unaccounted for following two separate incidents involving bodies of water in southwest B.C. last weekend. 

Police in West Vancouver say a 29-year-old man is believed to have died after going missing while swimming across a lake in Cypress Provincial Park.

They say B.C. Emergency Health Services and North Shore Rescue reported the man missing to the department around 6:30 p.m. Sunday.

Police say the man, who was from Burnaby, was swimming across Cabin Lake with his fiancée when he "began to struggle."

They say several witnesses saw the man in distress and his companion trying to help him before the man slipped beneath the surface and disappeared.

A news release from the department says North Shore Rescue and West Vancouver Fire Service conducted an initial search in the water Sunday night, but were forced to suspend it as it got dark.

It says another underwater search will be conducted, but police confirmed the man's family has been notified and the investigation will be turned over to the B.C. Coroners Service once the body has been recovered from the lake.

Squamish crash leaves 1 unaccounted for

Another person is unaccounted for after a vehicle with four occupants went into the Squamish River around 2:30 a.m. Saturday morning. 

A release from Squamish RCMP says three individuals were able to make it to safety, but one person is not believed to have made it out of the vehicle.

Police say aerial and ground searches have not been able to locate the vehicle.

Media relations officer Const. Kelly Wu says recovery efforts were paused due to current elevated water levels resulting from spring runoff. She says they will reassess recovery efforts as water levels begins to recede and visibility improves. 

"We do want to acknowledge that it's a very difficult time for the family and we're going to do everything we can to continue to monitor and reassess the conditions to determine when it's safe to proceed with the recovery," she said.