International student drowns in White Lake, BC

On 28 July 2021, international student Anuradha Kudagoda, drowned while swimming with friends at White Lake in British Columbia.

Anuradha, who was from Sri Lanka, was studying at Thompson Rivers University. He was 27 years old.

Police said the deceased was with a group of non-swimmers when he began to panic and drowned in the water while attempting to swim to a raft.

The RCMP said that Anuradha attempted to swim to a floating dock in the lake when he appeared to panic. His friends attempted to throw him something that would help him float but failed. He went under the water and did not resurface.

Police confirmed that Anuradha and the group he was with were non-swimmers.

White Lake firefighters and Shuswap Search and Rescue searched the area but were not able to find the Anuradha. An RCMP diving team attended the scene on the morning of July 29 and recovered the student’s body.

Too many international student drowning deaths

This latest tragic incident, follows several other international student drowning deaths in Canada in 2021:

• 25 July – Mohammed Najib Sadek Kashem Chowdhury, a 25-year-old international student at the University of Ottawa, drowned on 25 July while swimming with friends near the Wakefield Covered Bridge on the Gatineau River. 

• 27 June – Anmol Sharma, a 20-year-old international student at Canada’s Georgian College, went swimming with two friends at Port Sydney Falls, north of Toronto.

• 12 June – Gurpreet Singh Gill, a 22 year old international student, drowned at the Wasaga Beach Area 2.

A further four international students drowned in Canada in 2020.

Learn about water safety in Canada

On average over 450 people die in drowning incidents in Canada every year. International students are more likely to drown than others.

Don’t become a victim. Learn about water safety in Canada for international students. Take the FREE Water Safety Course.

It could save your life.

Source: Salmon Arm Observer