Emergency crews look for missing person on South Saskatchewan River ( Tiffany Goodwein/ CHAT NEWS)

By Tiffany Goodwein

Search crews comb South Saskatchewan River for missing person

Aug 1, 2020 | 10:34 PM

MEDICINE HAT- Emergency crews were out in full force Saturday evening looking for any sign of a missing person.

The Medicine Hat Fire Department’s aquatic rescue team, the Medicine Hat Police Service, South Eastern Alberta Search and Rescue, and Halo Air Ambulance were on the scene after receiving a report of a missing person at approximately 5:30 p.m. Saturday.

Crews could be seen searching the South Saskatchewan River by boat. Searches also took place by foot and in the air.

“There’s eyewitness accounts of seeing a person in the water. There’s also leads that lead us to believe that the person got out of the water,” Medicine Hat Fire Department Capt. Scott Berg said.

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Despite reports on social media indicating a raft may have overturned, Berg said the report is unlikely tied to the missing person.

“We’ve had multiple calls to the river today. The river is very busy. Our fire department did make contact with people and brought them to shore. They were not overturned in a raft, but there was a lot of activity on the water today; rafts, floaters, kayakers.”

A dive team was also present to examine deep underwater.

“SESAR ( South Eastern Alberta Search and Rescue) identified a few points of interest. Sonar is used to look at the topography of the bottom of the river, and our divers are going to verify what those points of interest are,” Capt. Berg said, adding crews haven not found anything so far.

Not much is known about the identity of the missing person, including their gender, which according to Berg is hampering their search efforts.

“Currently we don’t have a great description of the person that has gone missing,” Berg said.

The search will conclude at dark, and Berg said crews on the water will coordinate with land crews, and together they will determine whether to reconvene tomorrow morning.

Berg said the aquatic rescue team received numerous calls on the river Saturday, and the incident is a poignant reminder to use precautions when on the river.

” I just want to remind river- goers about the importance of life jackets, and having proper safety equipment with them as they are floating and enjoying the hot weather with them this weekend,” Berg said.