The body of a man reported missing after a pickup truck plunged through ice on Cedar Lake in Manitoba has been recovered, weeks after the incident, authorities said.
Search teams recovered Corbin Constant on Thursday, Jan. 8, according to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. A woman who was with him, Tasha Ferland, remains missing.
Constant and Ferland were 31 and 23, respectively, according to the CBC and the Winnipeg Free Press.
Authorities were first notified early on Dec. 16 after a pickup truck drove onto Cedar Lake and broke through the ice. The incident occurred about 250 feet from shore near the Manitoba Hydro boat launch, prompting police and other officials to respond.
Investigators later said the truck, carrying a male and female passenger, drove out onto the ice before it gave way. Tracks were seen leading from the boat ramp out onto the lake, and the occupants were unable to escape before the vehicle went under.
Despite the immediate deployment of a drone and an underwater recovery team, neither person was found in the days following the crash.
The Hutterian Emergency Aquatic Response Team, a nonprofit search-and-recovery group, said it joined the operation late last month using specialized underwater robotics. In a Dec. 31 statement on social media, the group said it could only reach the area safely by airboat and recovered one missing person’s cell phone. The team added that they believed the bodies may have been carried downstream toward the generating station.
Constant’s family remembered him as a “beloved son, brother, grandson, nephew and friend,” saying he left a lasting impression on those who knew him, according to the CBC. The outlet also reported that Constant was a member of the Misipawistik Cree Nation.
“The recovery of one of our loved one … meant a lot,” Misipawistik Cree Nation Chief Heidi Cook said over the weekend, adding that relatives felt relief and gratitude, according to the CBC.
Police said search efforts for Ferland are expected to continue as conditions allow, depending on the weather.
