The search for a missing hunter ended in tragedy as Elk Valley RCMP and Fernie Search and Rescue recovered his body in the Koocanusa Lake area.
Elk Valley RCMP received a report just before 8 p.m. on Sunday, November 29th of an overdue hunter, who was last heard from on Friday.
Police say they were told the man may have gone hunting in the Rocky Mountains south of Fernie, and was known to frequent a number of areas, including Jaffray, Elko and Lodgepole.
“Police, who were concerned for the man’s health and wellbeing, launched an investigation and began to search for him and any signs of his passenger car,” said Cpl. Jesse O’Donaghey, spokesman for the BC RCMP in the Southeast District.
Fernie Search and Rescue (SAR) was enlisted by the Elk Valley RCMP to aid in the search at sunrise on Monday morning.
Members of the SAR team later found the missing man’s vehicle in the Koocanusa Lake area.
“Sadly, as a result of an expanded ground search from the man’s vehicle, the man was discovered deceased nearby,” said O’Donaghey. “RCMP do not believe that criminality was involved in the man’s unexpected death.”
The BC Coroners Service has launched an independent investigation into the man’s sudden death. RCMP said the man’s name will not be released to respect the privacy of the deceased, under the Coroner’s Act.