Emergency personnel will be out in force this Saturday when hundreds of young people are expected to participate in the annual Nechako River Float.
Members of the Prince George RCMP, the Conservation Officer Service, Prince George Fire Rescue and the Prince George Fire Rescue Society will be taking to the water, shoreline and nearby roads to keep an eye out for trouble.
None of the agencies support the event and all are urging participants to take precautions.
"Often people participating in these events make decisions that put themselves or others at an increased risk of harm," Prince George RCMP Cpl. Craig Douglass said. "We want to minimize these poor decisions and make sure everyone gets home safely."
Floaters are urged to wear life jackets and use quality floatation devices, as opposed to cheap and easy-to-puncture inflatables, particularly since the river is flowing faster and is colder than in past years.
And parents are urged not to allow their children to go on the river alone - kids as young as 12 years old have been found on the river unsupervised.
"The Nechako River, while calm, still has an immense amount of power and has the potential to turn a day of fun on the water into tragedy," Prince George Search and Rescue Society spokesman Dale Bull said.
In 2011, organizers postponed the event for a month because the river was flowing too fast.
Since May 1, there have been 33 drowning deaths across B.C. Although that is down from 36 by the same point last year, the count is still too high, B.C. Coroners Service spokeswoman Barb McLintock said.
A spike of four deaths in five days earlier this month prompted the Coroners Service to issue a statement urging caution around water and added that "alcohol and water-based activities don't go together any more than drinking and driving do."
A review of drowning deaths over the last five years found that 40 per cent of the victims were impaired by alcohol or drugs, the Coroners Service noted.
Last year, on the roads heading into Wilkins Park, where the event begins, police uncovered more than 50 violations for various offences, including drunk driving, driving without insurance, and driving without a license.
Police will also be conducting foot patrols at known hot spots for public drinking along the route.
