Body of 14-year-old boy found in pond northwest of Edmonton
The body of the 14-year-old boy who drowned in a Whitecourt, Alta., pond on Sunday was recovered on Tuesday, RCMP told CTV News Edmonton.
The victim, identified by family as Hassan Mohamed, drowned in the pond area of Rotary Park Outdoor Waterpark just before 4 p.m.
RCMP and firefighters searched until midnight on Sunday and between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m. on Monday. Divers went into the pond just after 9 a.m. on Tuesday and recovered the body at 10:18 a.m., the RCMP said.
"We're trying to help the family heal and we're very glad that right now the body was found, which is very, very important," said Ahmed Shukri, a friend of the family through Edmonton's Somali community.
"It's going to give the family a bit of closure."
On Monday, the family of the victim questioned why divers hadn't come to search for their son sooner.
Cpl. Mike Hibbs said the divers are volunteers and that "they're quite busy at this time."
Shukri, and the family a day earlier, said there is a lack of warning signs and safety measures to keep park users safe.
"We're feeling this was preventable," he said.
In 2014, a 19-year-old drowned in the same pond, Cpl. Hibbs told CTV News.
Whitecourt's mayor told CTV News the pond does have warning signs and that the town will review the death.
With files from CTV News Edmonton's David Ewasuk
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
Powerful tornado tears across Nebraska, weather service warns of 'catastrophic' damage
Devastating tornadoes tore across parts of eastern Nebraska and northeast Texas Friday as a multi-day severe thunderstorm event ramped up in the central United States, injuring at least three people.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Trump's lawyers try to discredit testimony of prosecution's first witness in hush money trial
Donald Trump's defence team attacked the credibility Friday of the prosecution's first witness in his hush money case, seeking to discredit testimony detailing a scheme between Trump and a tabloid to bury negative stories to protect the Republican's 2016 presidential campaign.