Quebec coroner formally identifies the 2 firefighters swept away in floodwaters

The Quebec coroner's office has confirmed that two bodies pulled from a river Wednesday in the province's Charlevoix region were those of volunteer firefighters who had been swept away by floodwaters.

A spokesperson says the two men who disappeared on Monday during a rescue mission were Regis Lavoie, 55, and Christopher Lavoie, 23.

Police on Wednesday found their bodies about 500 metres apart in the Riviere du Gouffre, in St-Urbain, Que.

Quebec Premier Francois Legault has said that one of the firefighters used his own amphibious ATV to try to reach a couple whose home was surrounded by water in the town about 110 kilometres northeast of Quebec City.

But details of the intervention that led to the deaths of the two men -- who according to news reports were not related -- remain unclear, and Legault has asked that people not rush to judgment.

About 100 Quebec municipalities and roughly 1,450 homes were affected by the recent bout of flooding, mostly north of the St. Lawrence River from the border with Ontario to the provincial capital area.

This report by the Canadian Press was first published on May 5, 2023.