Police, Coast Guard and search and rescue crews are scouring the Tahsis area on western Vancouver Island for a missing overdue kayaker last seen Friday evening.
The kayaker is believed to be 21-year-old Allan Duarte Da Rosa, according to Nootka Sound RCMP in a news release.
Mounties say they were alerted to the Coast Guard’s search for him around 10 p.m. Friday. A few hours earlier, around 5 p.m., witnesses saw him depart into the west side of the Tahsis Inlet.
RCMP on Monday said Da Rosa’s unoccupied kayak had been recovered near Tahsis Narrows, but despite search efforts, he was not located.
They say he stands 6’4″ tall, has dark hair and brown eyes and was last seen wearing a black jacket.
“Tahsis Coast Guard and GSAR (ground search and rescue) attended and conducted extensive searches of the inlet as well as all accessible areas on both sides of the Inlet,” added RCMP.
Anyone with information is asked to call Nootka Sound RCMP at 250-283-2227.
The Village of Tahsis, located on the Island’s west coast, sits at the head of the Tahsis Inlet and is about a three-hour drive west of Campbell River.
Ethan Morneau
