A recovery mission still ongoing at the South Saskatchewan River for a jet ski rider who went into the South Saskatchewan River Weir Saturday afternoon.
The Saskatoon Police Service have said they have identified the person and contacted their family but still have not been able to recover the body.
“The river is not the place to be, and unfortunately, I’ve heard cases over my career where, and in fact I’ve been working at times, where an individual’s been in the water and they’re with friends and all of a sudden, they disappear and they are gone,” says Saskatoon Police Chief Cameron McBride.
“We’ll continue searching the riverbanks and keeping our eyes open for, you know, anything in the water.”
Two rescue boats from the fire department headed back out Monday, using sonar and expanding the search south of the weir.
McBride says his department can support the efforts with a search plane and possibly their newly purchased underwater drone as they continue their investigation into the incident.
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He says this is an important reminder of how dangerous the river can be.
“Given the location and the river flow and the danger of the circumstance, it’s really hard for us to do very much proactive [work],” said McBride.
The dangers of the river’s tides are well known to water sports enthusiasts. Saskatoon Water Ski Club volunteer Jim Clunie has spent decades training people on water safety around Saskatchewan waterways.
“The way we tell other people to like going on a boat or anything on the river, especially around Saskatoon where there’s more people, it’s like if you drive into the same neighbourhood but they’ve changed all the streets,” says Clunie.
“Just because you could afford a boat or a sea-doo or whatever and you got a licence and you got insurance, doesn’t mean that you know everything. Like there’s a lot to be learned there.”
He says tragedies like this are felt by the whole community, while police are asking for support.
“They could turn up miles and miles down the river eventually. You just never know. I would like to think that individuals who live by the river or who use the river are always keeping their eyes open,” said McBride.
The water security agency has since cut off the flow of water from the Gardiner Dam.
The City of Saskatoon continues to warn residents to stay off of the river due to the ongoing elevated flow rate.
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