'We have to learn from this': Lifeguard questions emergency response to fatal drowning

A lifeguard with 15 years experience who was the first on the scene of a boating fatality this holiday weekend near Gander said that there's lessons to be learned from the tragic event.

Three teenagers were out canoeing without life jackets on Vardy's Pond Sunday afternoon when their canoe overturned. Two of the boys were able to swim safely to shore.

The third boy, 14-year-old Matthew Sargent, drowned.

"It's hard. To know you're there on the scene, trying to do as much as you can and for whatever reason it's just not working," said Robyn Noseworthy, who was nearby at her family cabin when the canoe flipped.

Noseworthy said that she called the emergency into 911 and then assessed how she could respond.

"We had a boat there, no paddles, no life jackets," said Noseworthy. "We can't put ourselves in that situation. We would have been there right alongside them."

Noseworthy said she drove down the access road to find the entrance to the cabin where the boys were staying. She was met by a boy who waved her down.

"I got out of the truck and I started running because the gate was barricaded and locked," said Noseworthy. "We couldn't get the truck down."

Noseworthy and the boy ran the roughly one kilometre stretch to the cabin.

"Two of the boys had already gotten out of the water," and were covered in blankets, she said.

She told the boys to huddle together in bed to warm up and sent another boy to the road to flag emergency vehicles into the cabin, while she kept her eyes peeled for Sargent.

"I stayed mostly down by the water to see if I could scan and see him," said Noseworthy.

"I just stayed there calling his name — waiting for help."

Gander Fire and Rescue, RCMP and paramedics arrived on the scene about 30 minutes after she saw the boys go in the water. Sargent's body was eventually recovered from the pond hours later by a local man who had his own diving gear..​

Emergency dispatch

Noseworthy is raising questions about the emergency response.

"It seems like a lack of coordination with the 911 services between all departments in a state of emergency," Noseworthy told CBC News.

She said she was told during a debrief with Gander's municipal police that the RCMP were dispatched to Fogo Island and that the Gander Fire Department was told the call was for a motor vehicle collision involving water.

"I don't know what happened on the other side of the 911 call but the response time that we had was not there for what we needed."

The Newfoundland and Labrador 911 Bureau said it has reviewed calls into its response centre and believes that everything was handled appropriately.

"The first call identified the location of the incident and the caller was transferred to the RCMP as per protocol," said Kerry Power, executive director.

RCMP Sgt. Trevor O'Keefe acknowledged some initial confusion.

"Our operators dispatched the call to our Fogo Island detachment as it was thought the incident was occurring in Joe Batt's Arm, but in fact, it was on Joe Batt's Road between Gander and Glenwood," O'Keefe said in a statement to CBC News.

"Our Fogo Island officers quickly determined that this was not in their area and the call was then rerouted to Gander RCMP."

Ambulance and fire and rescue were at the pond by the time police got there, O'Keefe said.

"The response time by our Gander officers did not impact the tragic outcome of the incident."

Lessons learned

Noseworthy said that she wants people to understand how important water safety skills are in the wake of this tragic event.

"I mean the only thing that I can say after the fact is that we have to learn from this," said Noseworthy. "We have to continue to think proactively about ourselves in water situations."

Noseworthy cited statistics that show rates of drowning in Newfoundland and Labrador are increasing. According to a 2016 report from the Lifesaving Society drownings in the province increased between 2014 and 2015.

"After the fact? Hug your kids," said Noseworthy. "Realize that adolescence is a very risky time and the more you can ingrain the water safety aspects — it's a way of life."

She said schools should be more proactive in teaching water safety skills. She said since the accident at least one school in central Newfoundland has contacted her to present to students about the drowning.