Officials urge caution at Ottawa beaches after recent drownings

Hot and humid weather has people across the Ottawa flocking to city beaches. CTV’s Josh Marano shares what you need to know before taking a dip.

Ottawa beaches were packed on a hot Sunday afternoon as people looked to cool off, while staying safe.

Last week, two fatal drownings were reported in eastern Ontario, including a man near Westboro Beach and a toddler just off Wolfe Island near Kingston.

Ottawa Fire Services public information officer Nick Defazio is reminding swimmers to always take precautions near waterways.

“Our water rescue stations are strategically placed across the city, they do have fast responses and they’re highly trained, but we recommend certain things for our residents,” Defazio said.

“One would be to swim at a beach that has a lifeguard, obviously always wearing your lifejacket when you’re going out, and if you’re not a strong swimmer, take swimming lessons or swim with someone who is and stay in the shallow water.”

Defazio adds they have received many calls for people getting caught in Deschênes Rapids along the Ottawa River.

“The rapids in Ottawa, specifically the Deschênes Rapids, is one of the biggest, notorious spots for our crews to respond,” Defazio said.

“Know your location when you’re going out, know where those rapids are. If you’re going out on a paddleboard or an inflatable for the first time, know where those rapids are, because people often get caught in those rapids.”

Swimmers like Zandra Koopman, spending the day at Britannia Beach with her family, always accompanies her daughter when she is in the water.

“It really just reinforces you have to watch your kid at all times, you have to make sure they have the floatie on, especially these beaches in particular. It’s ‘s not like a pool, you don’t know how deep it’s going to go. It can just drop off in a second,” she said.

For Koopman, she says she is also cautious of the water, especially since the city switched from daily to weekly E. coli bacteria testing this year.

“I do wish they’d go back to the seven days a week, it just kind of felt a little bit safer that way,” Koopman said.

“It is nice you can at least go online and check but, it definitely kind of varies sometimes if we’re maybe going to go or how far out you’re going to go. Maybe go to a pool instead on certain days.”

Ottawa Public Health has the water testing records on their website, along with other tips on staying safe when at the beach or on the water.

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