On Saturday, October 15, 2022 at approximately 10:30 PM, the RCMP in Fort McPherson received a report of an overdue boater.
A 31 year old adult male had reportedly left Fort McPherson by boat earlier that evening to travel to his camp on the Husky Channel 40 kms from Fort McPherson. The individual failed to report his arrival as was his usual practice. A search was initiated the following day, however a significant amount of ice on the river prevented a safe water search.
Poor weather conditions with freezing rain also prevented an aerial search. Efforts to reach the male’s camp by ground via ATV also proved unsuccessful.
In the early afternoon on Monday October 17, 2022, weather conditions improved. Two family members and an RCMP member from Fort McPherson searching from a chartered Canadian Helicopter located the missing male on the shoreline of the Husky Channel approximately half way to his camp. His boat had become stuck in the ice. The male was not injured and in good spirits.
The RCMP would like to thank all those who helped in this search including community volunteers from Fort McPherson and Tsiigetchik, Inuvik CASARA, and Canadian Helicopters. The RCMP would also like to remind everyone of the unsafe travel conditions on northern waterways at this time of year and to avoid travel unless absolutely necessary.
