A family is in mourning following the loss of 24-year-old Tyler James Devon Smith, a resident of Sechelt who is believed to have drowned the morning of Oct. 13 while working on a log boom.
Sunshine Coast RCMP reported that Smith went missing some time between 9:05 and 9:30 a.m. last Thursday while attaching swifter lines at the Twin Creeks Log Sort in Port Mellon. The young father was working at Sechelt Creek Contracting Ltd.
No witnesses were identified and searches by the Navy, Search and Rescue and the Coast Guard failed to find Smith, who had been working 400 metres from the shoreline.
"Basically, without a body, we still investigate as a missing persons case," said Cpl. Steve Chubey.
RCMP believe Smith, who had worked only a few months at the log sort, was not wearing a lifejacket at the time of his disappearance.
Following the initial search, efforts were stalled as police said they lacked the necessary means to explore the area of Smith's disappearance, where water levels approach a depth of around 200 metres.
According to Chubey, the force is only authorized to explore depths under 50 metres.
"The RCMP doesn't have the resources to dive that deep," he said.
Until Smith is located, the investigation will remain a missing persons case, he said.
Chubey said the RCMP have recommended contracting a commercial company to initiate dives, but added that as of Oct. 18 no search was actively being carried out.
For now, any further investigation into the matter remains the jurisdiction of Worksafe BC, which won't be undertaking any efforts at recovery, spokeswoman Donna Freeman said.
"Our role is to speak with the employer, coworkers, witnesses and try to determine what happened to the best of our ability," she said. "We would be in no way involved with a rescue or recovery initiative."
A celebration of life for Smith will be held Oct. 29 at the Royal Canadian Legion at 2 p.m. in Sechelt.
Smith's passing leaves behind a family and two sons, one yet to be born.
