Tuesday February 4, 2020 ~ SOOKE [Also see articles pg 1 & pg 3 in the February 7 to 10, 2020 weekend digest of West Shore Voice News]
by Mary P Brooke ~ West Shore Voice News
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Three Sooke-area men — all age 20 — are now confirmed dead following what appears to have been accidental interface with the power of rushing water at the Sooke River over this past weekend.
Sooke RCMP issued a release at 2:45 pm today February 4 saying the third body had been found near Sooke River Road. Two other bodies were found near the Sooke River on Sunday.
The trio was last seen on Friday January 31. The first ‘missing persons’ call came in from family members on Saturday February 1. The three buddies were last seen leaving Jensen’s parents’ house around 10:30 pm on Friday evening.
“Hundreds of volunteers from around the Sooke area went out searching, mostly on back roads,” says Sooke Detachment Commander S/Sgt. Brett Sinden.
“The hundreds of people that came out to find them when family reached out for support speaks to the community spirit of Sooke,” said S/Sgt Sinden.
While the RCMP has not officially released the names, a torrent of social media posts identify the men as Eric Blackmore, Cory Mills and A.J. Jensen. The surnames vibrate to a long-time family history in the Sooke region.
Juan de Fuca Electoral Area Director Mike Hicks was interviewed on CHEK-TV on Monday, clearly devastated by the news over the impact it is having on the families and local community.
RCMP says foul play is not suspected. Weather conditions may have impacted the vehicle that the three men were presumed travelling in —
a blue Dodge Dakota truck which was found in the fast-moving Sooke River on Sunday evening.
“A piece of the vehicle was found floating in the river,” said S/Sgt. Sinden in an interview with West Shore Voice News this afternoon.
“The night that this occurred there were torrential rains, a water level higher than in many years, and water running across the road,” he said.
“Our thoughts are with the families of all three of the victims and all those who have been and are impacted by this terribly tragic event,” says Sinden. “Would like to thank all the volunteers who have assisted in the search over the course of the last few days.”
Juan de Fuca Search and Rescue led most of the active search along and in the river. On Sunday morning, the truck was found wedged in the trees and underbrush on the banks of the Sooke River, about a kilometre downstream from the Sooke Potholes lower parking lot.
The body of one man was recovered nearby. The body of another man was found downriver approximately an hour and a half later. Those were identified by friends in the area as Mills and Blackmore.
On Monday February 3, an underwater recovery team and divers undertook a search, as well as searchers in kayaks and walking along the shores to find Jensen. His body was located on Tuesday February 4 near Sooke River Road.
On Tuesday when tides were low, searchers thought they would have a better chance of scouring the river’s edge. With heavy rains January 30 and 31, the river had swelled. As waters subsided, chances of finding something — perhaps earlier missed — were better.
An RCMP helicopter was scheduled to assist in the search Tuesday but inclement weather prevented its arrival. And to search near Fred Milne Park at the corner of Sooke Road and Sooke River Road, a police canine unit from Saanich was also on scene Tuesday.
Mid-afternoon February 4 the coroner was still on scene. The RCMP investigation is not yet complete, with the detachment supporting the coroner. The investigation will determine the circumstances of what actually happened to the vehicle and by default what happened to the three men, explained S/Sgt Sinden.
All three deceased young men had been students at Edward Milne Community School (EMCS) in Sooke. This statement was released by the SD62 school board this afternoon:
“The Sooke School District would like to offer our condolence to the families and friends of the three young men found deceased in Sooke. They were all a part of our school family, having graduated from Edward Milne Community School. This is a tragic loss and horrific event for the families to have to endure. We are supporting students and staff impacted by this loss by ensuring counselling support is available in our schools. Our thoughts are with those who are struggling at this time.”
An online fundraiser for the families of the three men was started Monday morning. By Wednesday at 12:45 pm the fund had reached $20,147 of its $30,000 goal by way of 246 donations in two days.
It’s a tight-knit community in Sooke, and people know each other. Donors include Diane Alexander, Mark Arden, Jeff and Carolyn Bateman, Kevin & Bev Berger, Mary Brooke, Carmen Brousseau, Jackie Chamberlain, Deborah- Mike-Jacob-&-Dominic DeZeng, Jason and Rose Dumont, Lexey Dumont, Sandra Eglington, Doni Eve and Rick Kasper, Shayne Fedesenko, Mark Gantzert, Elaine Greer, B&B Halliday, Jenn Hargreaves, Sandy Jadresko, Emily Kraft, Jackie Lamoureux, Betsy Lockwood, Phyllis Lysionek, Lynn & Blair MacDonald, Julie Mcdermaid, Doug & Wila Noyce, Dan Perrier, Aaron O’Quinn, Berni and Frank Reay, Amy Rubidge, Matt & Bev Sahlstrom, Charmaine Shipley, Barb St Germain, Dawn Tipton, Tia Williams, Dawn Zigay, and Michelle Zigay.
Donations from $5 to $20 to $50 dollars are listed — many as ‘anonymous’, a few are for $100, and some much larger including one for $2,500.
Sooke Mayor Maja Tait has provided a statement about the loss of the three young men to the power of the river: “Words cannot describe the sadness felt in our community. This is a most unfortunate tragedy. We express our deepest and heartfelt condolences to the families and friends, and hold them in our thoughts and prayers. We are very grateful for the search and rescue crew and all of the community volunteers and support for the families and friends.”
=== NOTES:
Coincidentally, there were other men gone missing in separate incidents over the same weekend rainy time period, in the Courtenay and Duncan areas, stretching search and rescue teams thin.