With the deaths of three men in Lac Saint-Louis this week and construction holiday about to begin, experts are urging Quebecers to play it safe on the water.
The bodies of two men in their 30s were found near a Hydro dam in Melocheville this week, where they were fishing.
On Thursday, rescuers found the body of an 18-year-old whose rented kayak had capsized in the waters off Beaconsfield.
One of the men in Melocheville was not wearing a lifejacket, and officials say the teen kayaker’s lifejacket was sound separately floating in the water before his body was discovered.
Though it is required under Canadian law that there is a lifejacket or personal floatation device for every passenger on board a boat, passengers are not required to wear it on most boats.
The World Health Organization and multiple coroners have recommended that wearing lifejackets be mandatory.
The Quebec Maritime Association has found that 80 per cent of drowning victims weren’t wearing their lifejackets.
The Quebec Lifesaving Society said that that troubling statistic that angers them.
While most boaters aren’t required to wear them by law, Lifesaving Society director Raynald Hawkins thinks people should always exercise caution on the water.
“For me, personally, I want to put more focus on the obligation to wear one. You bring it, wear it,” he said. “You have to wear the lifejacket all the time when you are on a boat.”
Transport Canada adds that swimming ability is not a factor in whether or not a boater should wear a lifejacket.
"Research shows that unexpected immersion in cold water is a serious risk to life if a boater is not wearing a flotation device. This is true despite the boater's experience, closeness to shore, and even swimming ability," it said. "A sudden fall into cold water can seriously affect breathing, nerves, and muscle strength. A lifejacket gives you thermal protection as well as keeping you buoyant."
