(Posted 7:30 a.m., May 25)
24-year-old man drowns off Petrie Island
By Fred Sherwin
Orléans Online

The hot weather and a questionable policy on beach openings has conspired to claim the life of a young man who drowned while swimming off the east beach at Petrie Island on Monday.

The body of the 24-year-old male was recovered by police divers about 10 metres from the beach in extremely deep water.

Wirnesses saw the man on the beach before the accirdent happened with two women and two children.

Although the area where the droiwning occured is well-known among Petrie Island regulars for having a severe drop off just metres from the beach, there are no signs warning swimmers of the conditions.

The city's parks and recreation department also doesn't traditionally post lifeguards on city beaches until the weekend prior to the end of the school year, regardless of the weather conditions.

The temperature on Monday was 30°C and a number of people were on the island trying to beat the heat when the accident occurred.

Because the beach wasn't officially open, there were no buoys in place marking where the drop off occurs.

Because of the accident the city is now considering posting warning signs on the beach and assigning lifeguards on those occassions when the weather conditions are extreme enough to warrant their presence.

Drownings off Petrie Island are extremely rare and, in fact, this is the first drowning to anyone's knowledge since the island was converted to a public beach in 2003.

(This story was made possible thanks to the generous support of our local business partners.)

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