Deadly weekend on the water as 4 people drown in the past 4 days

4 people have drowned in the past 4 days, making this a deadly weekend on the water.

One of the latest drownings happened last night in Lake Ontario at Port Dalhousie. People on the shore watched as a man fell into the water from a tube. Other people were trying to help the man. His body was later recovered.

In Guelph, a tragedy happened on Guelph Lake. Witnesses say a group of young people was swimming in this area popular with newcomers to Canada, when one of them went under, reported to be 17 years old. It’s the second drowning in two weeks in Guelph Lake.

In Toronto, a man died after falling from a tour boat near Ontario Place on Sunday.

And last Friday, police found the body of Cody Thomson, who died in the Grand River after falling from a Sea Doo he’d just bought.

The Lifesaving Society says last year, in 2021, 256 people drowned in Canada. In Ontario, 54 people have drowned so far this year.

80% of the drowning victims are male. And the group with the fastest increase in the rate of drownings is older people aged 65-74.

Water safety experts say most drownings are predictable and preventable. You don’t have to be an expert swimmer, you just have to practice water safety.

There’s another category of people affected by the tragedy of drowning. The Lifesaving Society calls it near-drowning.

It says that affects about 543 people a year who have to go to the hospital after a near drowning. It’s non-fatal but can lead to lifelong disabilities. And the largest group affected by near-drownings is young people under 19.