The family of a 38-year-old Sechelt man who died after a boating accident near Texada Island over the weekend describes him as a hard worker who was “loved by everybody.”
Jordan Patrick Beaudoin was with his common-law partner on a fishing trip Saturday evening when they ran into rough weather in the Strait of Georgia.
Their 16-foot boat started taking on water and capsized around 9:30 p.m.
Beaudoin’s partner, identified by family as Shannon McBoyle, remarkably managed to survive by swimming to the shore of Texada and finding help.
Beaudoin never arrived.
“His family’s not doing too good,” the deceased’s uncle Leonard Beaudoin told CTV News. “Everybody’s really upset. I’m shocked and beside myself.”
Both Beaudoin and McBoyle are believed to have been wearing life jackets.
The Joint Rescue Coordination Centre said McBoyle drifted and swam to shore, then spent hours searching for an occupied home.
Romona Kappmeier said the woman came to her door and she wrapped her in a blanket.
“She started to cry. She was out of control, out of control. I felt so sorry,” Kappmeier said.
McBoyle remained in hospital in Powell River Monday recovering from hypothermia.
A search effort was launched Sunday and Beaudoin’s body was located that evening near the south tip of the island.
His death is still under investigation by the BC Coroners Service and RCMP.
With a report from CTV Vancouver’s Scott Hurst
