Lost fishermen found cold, but safe, on McCulloch Lake

KELOWNA – Two men in their 80’s spent a chilly Friday evening stranded on an island in McCulloch Lake.

It started as a fishing trip on the lake off Highway 33, south east of Kelowna.

“Their boat motor failed and the gentlemen got disoriented with the oncoming darkness,” according Central Okanagan Search and Rescue spokesperson Duane Tresnich.

“The did the right thing by beaching the boat on a small island and waited to be rescued.”

When the men didn’t return home when they were supposed to, one of their wives called the RCMP. The police found their parked truck and called search and rescue. The volunteers responded and began a water search and found them on the island. The men were cold, but safe.

One was taken to the hospital suffering from a mild case of hypothermia.

“The males were not completely equipped for their night stay as they did not have a cell phone on them and they did not have a survival kit in the boat,” said Tresnich. “Even a small one that had matches and material to light would have helped them stay warm.”

According to Tresnich, the pair did take home two nice sized fish.

To contact the reporter for this story, email halexander@infotelnews.ca or call 250-491-0331.