Woman dies after being swept away in creek near Garibaldi Lake
Man also caught in fast-moving waters of Rubble Creek but managed to make it to shore
The body of a 23-year-old woman from Burnaby was recovered Sunday night after she was swept away in Rubble Creek in Garibaldi Lake Provincial Park.
Her companion, a 27-year-old man from Surrey, was also swept away. He managed to make it to shore on the far side of the creek and was eventually rescued.
Squamish RCMP say they received multiple calls about the incident around 2:50 p.m. PT Sunday.
According to a witness, the unidentified couple had been hiking and went into the water to cool off when the strong currents got the better of them.
"It's not a place people should go swimming, that's for sure," said Squamish Search and Rescue manager John Howe. "It's cold, very fast moving, rocky and [full of] boulders."
The woman's body was located by search and rescue at 7:30 p.m.PT, approximately 800 metres downstream from where she was last seen.
Whistler and Pemberton SAR were also involved. According to the RCMP news release, the rescue of the man by the swift water rescue team was extremely difficult "as the white water of Rubble Creek was so intense."
The B.C. Coroners Service has taken over the investigation.
According to Howe, Rubble Creek is more of a fast flowing river than a creek. He said it was the third drowning that he's attended in the area over 27 years of volunteering with Squamish SAR.
With files from Yvette Brend