Man dies in Cape Dorset boating tragedy; two others recovering

(updated at 3:05 p.m., Aug. 28)

A Cape Dorset man who spent hours clinging to a piece of ice after the boat he was travelling in capsized Aug. 26 has been pronounced dead at the local health centre, the RCMP said Aug. 27 in a news release.

Two other men survived the accident and are now recovering.

RCMP confirmed Aug. 28 that Peter Parr, 42, died in the incident, which began early in the morning of Aug. 26.

That’s when the three men were using the boat to return from a stone quarry near Cape Dorset amidst darkness and dense fog.

When their boat struck a piece of ice, the vessel capsized and the men ended up in frigid water, clinging to the ice.

Another group of boaters saw the stranded men and brought them aboard.

But the second group of boaters ran out of gas before they could make it back to Cape Dorset.

After that, they paddled a short distance to shore, and one man ran about two kilometres into Cape Dorset to call the police, who found the other men walking towards town in a area north of the community.

One of the three men who had been pulled from the water was in critical condition and police rushed him to the health centre — but he was pronounced dead soon after.

The other two men are recovering, police said.

The RCMP urges boaters and hunters to carry a SPOT device or a satellite phone when travelling out of their communities.