MERRITT, B.C. — The RCMP Underwater Recovery Team has been called in as efforts to find two missing fishermen on Stump Lake continue.
In a news release issued Wednesday (June 21), Merritt RCMP say they were told of two fishermen from the Lower Mainland last being seen by friends fishing late into Monday evening in a small aluminum boat.
When the pair didn’t return after dark, RCMP say their friends began to search for them before eventually calling police early Tuesday (June 20) morning.
Kamloops Search and Rescue were alerted of the missing fishermen and attended the area. After an extensive ground, water and air search, RCMP say debris belonging to the fishermen was found floating near the north end of Stump Lake, but neither the fishermen nor their boat were found.
The RCMP Underwater Recovery Team will continue searching at the lake in the coming days.
“We are not releasing the names of the missing fishermen at this time”, Staff Sgt. Josh Roda says. “We want to give the families privacy while they try to comprehend what took place”.
Anyone recreating in the Stump Lake area who finds debris that they believe may be associated to the missing fishermen is asked to contact Merritt RCMP at (250) 378-4262.
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