PELEE ISLAND, Ont. - The body of a Calgary woman who slipped beneath the waves of Lake Erie while coming to the aide of a relative in distress was found Wednesday, police said.
Cynthia Riediger, the mother of a teenage girl, went into the water on a raft with another person on Monday to rescue a 65-year-old man swimming off Pelee Island.
The unidentified man, who was in the water with his neice, was having difficulty in the strong current.
As the group was coming back to shore they noticed Riediger, 53, was missing.
Her body was spotted by an area resident Wednesday morning on the east shore beach area of the island, said Const. Shawna Coulter of the Ontario Provincial Police.
The search began 3 p.m. Monday with several private citizens -- including an off-duty captain of the coast guard -- taking their boats out. A provincial police marine unit and a helicopter from the U.S. coast guard also scoured the area.
On Tuesday the provincial police dive team and helicopters resumed the search.
"The waters were extremely rough," said Coulter, adding the search ended Tuesday evening because the dive team couldn't get a good image with its scanner.
The police search was to resume Wednesday, but authorities received a call that a body had been spotted.
Pelee Island Mayor Rick Masse called the incident a tragedy.
"I was always taught you have to respect water and you never know what can happen," said Masse.
"This is a case of what can go wrong, did go wrong."
The community is saddened and shocked by the news, he added.
"It's a sombre mood, nobody in our community likes to see this happen," Masse said.
"Our hope is that it brings some closure to the family."
An autopsy will be done to determine the cause of death.
With files from CKLW
