Father & Uncle drowns trying to save nine-year-old Daughter

Second man dies after swimming accident in central Ontario

(CP) – 4 days ago

BALA, Ont. — A second man has died from injuries he suffered following an incident in Ontario's cottage country on Wednesday in which his brother died.

Ontario provincial police confirm 53-year-old Ghulam Badar of Mississauga, Ont., died in a Barrie, Ont., hospital Thursday night.

Badar was placed on life support after being pulled from fast-moving Bala Falls in the Muskoka region.

He had jumped into the water to rescue his nine-year-old niece along with his brother, 44-year-old Nadim Shah of Chicago.

Shah was pronounced dead at the scene and Badar was presumed dead but was revived after being transported to hospital.

This tragedy followed a triple-drowning just a few days earlier in the nearby Moon Falls area.

The girl, who was wearing a lifejacket and playing in the water, had begun to drift away from shore.

Relatives said the two men soon vanished in the fast-moving water and appeared trapped under a whirlpool.


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Father drowns trying to save nine-year-old

Uncle Resuscitated

Giuseppe Valiante, National Post Published: Thursday, August 06, 2009
Related Topics

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Jim Sawkins
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Bala Falls
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Moon River Property Association



A father has drowned trying to rescue his nine-year-old daughter, and his brother is on life support after being pulled from the turbulent waters near Bala Falls in Muskoka, just a short distance from the spot where a trio of young men drowned three days ago.

"This has been a tragic week in Ontario's cottage country," said Julian Fantino, Commissioner of the OPP.

And an unusual week, according to many Bala residents, whose small town is known for its clothing and antique shops frequented by summer tourists and cottagers.

"It's very, very rare," said Brian McDonald, president of the Moon River Property Association and volunteer at the Bala United Church, who cannot remember a week like this in the more than 20 years he has lived in the area.

He said signs warn people to stay away from the water. "The signs are clear, I'm looking at one now," he said as he peered out the church window at a sign over the north part of the falls, which reads "Danger Fast Water Keep Away."

"Nobody should have been swimming in those falls, whether you're nine years old or 50," Jim Sawkins, Muskoka Lakes Fire Chief, said yesterday after the latest drowning.

Nadim Shah, 44, was visiting with his family from Hanover, Ill., with his brother, 53-year-old Ghulam Badar of Mississauga.

The family was spending the day at the falls, about 200 kilometres north of Toronto, and when the young girl, who was wearing a life jacket, began drifting away, her father, brother and uncle jumped into the water after her.

The girl was saved by her brother who managed to get her back to shore, but the two other men disappeared, police said.

Both Mr. Shah and his brother showed no vital signs when they were pulled from the water, but Mr. Badar was revived after being transported to the South Muskoka Memorial Hospital in Bracebridge.

"Through the miracles of modern medicine, they were able to do some work ... and were able to revive him," said Constable Peter Leon of the OPP. "But at this time, we can only hope the best."

Both men were found submerged about 10 to 12 feet under water, their bodies held in place by the current, said Chief Sawkins.

He said the Bala Dam, which is adjacent to the falls, was closed over the weekend to slow the water flowing downstream to assist in the recovery operation for the three swimmers who drowned at Moon River Falls on Sunday afternoon, but the current was still churning and conditions were dangerous for swimming.

In fact, police divers had only just recovered the third body from Sunday's accident earlier yesterday. The victim was identified as Vladimir Tsimfer, 31, of Mississauga. The other two victims were Peter Ludian, 21, who was visiting from Poland, and 22-year old Vladimir Sirghi of Barrie.

Moon River Falls is about 24 kilometres downstream from Bala Falls, and both are fed by the waters of the Moon River. The falls have been unusually violent in recent days due to increased rainfall.

"I can't say enough about the heroic efforts of not only my firefighters, but the two OPP officers," Chief Sawkins said. He arrived on scene within four minutes of the call, as did the 15-year-old son of a Bala firefighter.

"I was pleasantly surprised," Chief Sawkins said when he heard one of the brothers had been revived. "You know what, unfortunately it was a tragedy that someone died.... But we can at least say that we went in there and saved somebody, you know what I mean?"