Toronto man, 26, dead after drowning in Green River near Lake Simcoe

Deadly long weekend on the water One Toronto man is dead after a suspected drowning near Lake Simcoe. Sean Leathong reports.

A 26-year-old man from Toronto has been found dead after being swept away from a group of friends by a fast-moving current in the Green River near the northern tip of Lake Simcoe.

According to Ontario Provincial Police, a group of seven men from Toronto had rented a cottage in the area for the weekend.

The men were swimming in the river on Sunday around 5 p.m. when one of them started having trouble swimming against the current.

Nearby cottagers tried to help the man, but they were unsuccessful. One of his friends attempted to reach him in a canoe, but the vessel capsized and he had to be rescued by an off-duty firefighter.

The marine unit and an OPP helicopter were called in to help emergency crews search for the young man in the river and the nearby shores.

An underwater search and rescue unit recovered the man’s body Monday morning in 35 feet of water, about 100 to 150 feet from where he entered the water, OPP said.

An autopsy is expected to be conducted in the coming days.

OPP said the man’s family has been contacted but his identity is not yet being released.

Police said the fatal drowning incident comes as water levels in the area are at an all-time high, creating dangerous and turbulent conditions around waterways.

On Saturday, a 19-year-old man from Toronto died in hospital after drowning in Lake Simcoe at Sibbald Point Provincial Park after he and a friend waded into deep waters.