Richmond man, 24, dies trying to retrieve football from Fraser River
Posted July 6, 2020 4:30 pm.
Last Updated July 6, 2020 4:34 pm.
RICHMOND (NEWS 1130) — The search for a missing 24-year-old man who had apparently jumped into the Fraser River Sunday night has come to an end.
Richmond RCMP says the man’s body was found Monday around noon at low tide, not far from where he had disappeared.
He has been identified as Kory Conner Hedeo Nagata from Richmond.
RCMP, Richmond Fire Rescue, and the Coast Guard had been searching for him since a call came in around 9:30 p.m. Sunday about a man in the water near Pier 73 of the Pacific Gateway Hotel marina.
Nagata had apparently jumped into the river after a boat carrying several people docked near the pier. According to witnesses, he had grabbed the football, but couldn’t make it back to the dock and disappeared from view.
Two other men had jumped into the water after seeing him struggle but weren’t able to rescue him before they pulled themselves to safety.
Mounties point to the “unpredictable nature” of the Fraser River during the runoff season as playing a significant role in the incident. Hypothermia could have also been a factor. Whether alcohol was involved or not isn’t clear at this time.
“The Fraser River that surrounds Richmond can be deceiving, while on the surface it can sometimes look calm, it, in fact, is a fast-flowing river with strong currents, undertows and rapidly changing conditions. It is definitely not a place to be without proper safety equipment or to try and swim,” says Sgt. Ross Lundie, who is in charge of the RCMP Fraser Guardian patrol vessel.
Nagata’s family has been notified.
