A kayaker who was pulled from Riviere des Prairies in a rescue operation on Friday afternoon has died.
The kayaker has been identified as Jean Langevin, the 59-year-old Executive Director of the city of Bromont. He was taking part in the Charles-Bruneau charity paddling event with multiple other boaters.
"Mr. Pierre Bruneau and the foundation team wish to offer their sincere condolences to the family and relatives of the kayaker who died, as well as of all of Bromont," a foundation spokesperson said in a statement.
Bromont Mayor Pauline Quinlan praised Langevin, saying his participation in the event to support a colleague who survived cancer was indicative of his character.
"Mr. Langevin had come to ask me what I thought if he would take part in that activity," she said. "For him, it was a nice way to say we are there to support you and we're proud of you. He was that type of person."
Langevin and a woman were in a double kayak that became caught in the current and pushed up against a buoy at about 2:30 p.m. The kayakers were stuck and became tangled up in the chain that was holding the buoy in place.
Montreal and Laval firefighters rushed to the scene to offer assistance.
“The rescue itself was very delicate because they had to pull the kayak off the victim itself,” said Robby Lagace, chief of operations of the Montreal fire department.
They said Langevin was pulled from the water suffering from hypothermia and needed CPR. While his heart began beating again on its own, he was later pronounced dead in hospital.
The woman, who had been thrown from the kayak and quickly saved by firefighters, went into shock and also suffered hypothermia, as did a private rescuer from the Charles-Bruneau Foundation.
The 48 other participants from the event were taken to a shelter by organizers and firefighters to get warm clothes, food and to console each other.
The Circuit bleu Charles-Bruneau is a four-day, 110-kilometre tour around the island of Montreal in support of children with cancer.
This was Langevin's first attempt at the event, but organizers said he was experienced on the water.
“He was in a tandem kayak, which is known to be extremely stable and he was surrounded by qualified groups of guides,” said fellow kayaker Nicolas Valence.
The incident occurred at Parc des Rapides-du-Cheval-Blanc, an area known for its strong current, but participants say the water was no more challenging than it has been in the past.
The rest of the event has been cancelled. In 28 years, Charles-Bruneau Foundation has raised more than $50 million to help children with cancer.
“Every day we're fighting, fighting for the kids, and to have an incident like that it's terrible, it’s sad,” said foundation president Richard Laramee. “But we have to keep fighting.”
