Winnipeg music producer bands together with neighbours to save capsized kayaker

Dan Donahue had opened the back door of his home on Winnipeg's Kingston Crescent to throw out some recycling Monday night when he heard a voice screaming from the Red River.

That started off a chain of events that saw Donahue, a local music producer, and a neighbour paddle out into the dark, cold night in a canoe to rescue a capsized kayaker.

After hearing the screams, Donahue ran down the muddy riverbank behind his house, joined by a couple of neighbours who also heard the desperate calls. 

"We kept yelling back at the fellow, trying to get a sense of where he was and what kind of trouble he was in," Donahue said Thursday.

"It became apparent he was stuck in the middle of the river. He was floating north between the Elm Park Bridge and the St. Vital Bridge." 

'My biggest fear was hearing silence'

In the darkness, they weren't able to see where the man was thrashing in the water, but they noticed a vague shadow about 100 metres downstream, at a 45-degree angle from where they were.

Someone yelled that there was a canoe between two houses near them. Donahue and neighbour Doug Maguire — a physician and, like Donahue, an experienced canoeist — paddled into the frigid water, maintaining verbal contact with the man.

He kept complaining he couldn't feel his legs. So I gathered he was getting to the point [that] had he been in the water much longer, I don't think he would have made it.- Dan Donahue

"We just wanted him to stay alert. My concern was that he might be hypothermic and maybe beginning to lose consciousness," said Donahue.

"My biggest fear was hearing silence. The fact he kept yelling and screaming was a good thing," said Donahue.

Once they located the man, who appeared to have fallen out of a kayak, Donahue and Maguire knew enough to not try and lift him into the canoe. He was thrashing in panic and could cause the vessel to capsize.

Donahue managed to hang on to the man's wrists to keep him afloat while Maguire paddled to shore.

"He was delirious. Terrified. He kept complaining he couldn't feel his legs. So I gathered he was getting to the point [that] had he been in the water much longer, I don't think he would have made it," recalls Donahue.

Meanwhile, someone had called in the emergency and paramedics were guided to the scene of the dramatic rescue. Donahue and Maguire got the man to the shore, where he stumbled up the muddy and rocky riverbank near Churchill Drive. 

Donahue says the man didn't say a word to them. The canoeists went back onto the river to retrieve the kayak.

By the time they returned, the man was in the back of ambulance.

'It's really foolhardy'

Donahue says in retrospect, the incident seems odd. He can't figure out why someone would go in the river this time of year in the dark.

"It's really foolhardy. I would never go on the water this time of the year — certainly [not] without a life jacket in the pitch black of night, when you have a sprinkle of rain and you have a fair breeze blowing as well," he said.

"The other thing people don't realize is the current in this part of the river is quite strong as well. Once you get caught in it, you know, with this type of cold water, the odds of getting yourself to shore are next to none."

Donahue says the man looked like he was in his early 20s. It's not known if alcohol or drugs were a factor.

Winnipeg police say they have determined the kayak he was in had been stolen.

It was fortunate I was putting out my recycling. It was fortunate my neighbour was out walking his dog and heard the screams as well. We were lucky there was a canoe nearby.… This fellow was very, very lucky.- Dan Donahue

Friends and neighbours of Donahue are calling him a hero.  He doesn't agree. He says he was part of a series of fortunate coincidences.

"I think of myself more as a helper. The people who do this every day are the heroes," he said.

"It was fortunate I was putting out my recycling. It was fortunate my neighbour was out walking his dog and heard the screams as well. We were lucky there was a canoe nearby.… This fellow was very, very lucky. He hit the jackpot there," Donahue said with a laugh.

It's not the first time he's has been involved in a rescue. About a decade ago, he was driving on St. Mary's Road when he noticed smoke billowing out of a building. He helped pull a man out before paramedics arrived. 

And in 2015, he deterred a suspicious man from luring two kids into a truck, Winnipeg police said.

Donahue, who's worked with musicians from all around the world, is grateful he was in the right place at the right time again Monday night.

"I love Winnipeg. I have no plans in going anywhere soon. It's a great place to be for all sorts of reasons."