A 26-year-old woman has died after being pulled from the Puntledge River near Courtenay Friday night, according to Comox Valley RCMP.

The woman’s 7-month-old son was also rescued from the water and taken to BC Children’s Hospital, where RCMP said he is in critical condition as of Saturday morning.

Dozens of first responders and medical personnel were involved in the rescue effort after witnesses reported seeing two people floating down the river shortly before 2:30 p.m. on Friday.

"You know you've got a limited amount of time to get to your subjects. [Upon] arrival [it was] a very chaotic scene here at the park," said Paul Berry, of the Comox Valley Search and Rescue.

Witnesses said a “frantic” passerby jumped in the river to try and pull the woman and baby to safety.

"There was a man on the other side in the bushes by himself in just jeans and a t-shirt and he jumped in, swam about 20 feet off and was calling and pointing down and then the small rescue boat drove up and they searched," said witness Leanne Reid.

The Comox Valley RCMP boat and helicopter were called in to help find the woman and baby. The helicopter spotted the baby on the shoreline, and the woman was located later, several kilometres away at roughly 4 p.m.

"It is hard when someone passes away on you and you worked so hard to get to them," said Comox Valley RCMP Cst. Don Sinclair.

“Our heartfelt sympathies go out to this family”, said Sgt. Kevin Mazur in a release. “Based on the evidence and information we have gathered so far, there is no indication that any third party was involved in the pair entering the water.”

Any witnesses who saw the woman and baby near or in the Puntledge River before 2:40 pm Friday is asked to call the Comox Valley RCMP at 250-338-1321.

The BC Coroners Service is leading the investigation with assistance from Comox Valley RCMP. Police said the next update is expected no earlier than Monday.

With files from CTV Vancouver’s Penny Daflos