Ottawa Fire Services (OFS) says two paddleboarders were rescued from the Deschênes Rapids Thursday evening. The Gatineau fire department contacted Ottawa Fire Services just before 5 p.m. on initial reports of people in distress. An OFS water rescue team was sent to Cassels Street, where the two paddleboarders were found stranded in the middle of the rapids. “Two of our Water Rescue Teams launched rescue boats, with one positioned above the rapids and the other below. Two Water Rescue Technicians entered the water and swam from one of the rescue boats to reach the stranded paddleboarders,” said public information officer Nick DeFazio, in a post on X. Both paddleboarders were brought safely to shore by 5:32 p.m. DeFazio said distress calls from the rapids are common. “We remind everyone heading out on the water to be aware of where rapids are located and the serious dangers they can pose,” he said.
