A Kelowna Mountie is being hailed for his bravery and his actions last week when he helped rescue a woman from Okangan Lake.

On Nov. 27 at about 10:30 p.m. the Kelowna RCMP received a report of a distraught woman on the William R. Bennett Bridge. Police say it appears she intended to jump off the bridge.

When two officers arrived they found the 21-year-old at the peak of the northbound side, clinging to the outside of the passenger walkway. The first officer tried to talk the woman down, but eventually she pushed herself off and fell feet-first into the lake. She surfaced and began to tread water. The two officers then removed the rear seats from the police car and dropped them down to the woman to use as flotation devices, however she swam away from them.

Meanwhile, Cpl. Matt Hare, with the help of a Protrans WRB Bridge employee, had made his way down to the water’s edge on the West bank and saw the woman seemed to be in some kind of distress. Hare then waded into the water and swam to the woman. He was able to gather up one of the floating foam seats and then pulled the woman to shore.

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Both were treated for hypothermia.

“After seeing the woman swim away from safety and begin struggling due to the cold, I knew that we couldn’t wait for a boat so there was only one thing to do,” says Hare, “without someone’s help, she wasn’t going to come ashore and it would’ve turned into a recovery mission.”

Having jumped in the water to help pull an intoxicated swimmer from the lake this past September, Hare was no stranger to impromptu water rescues. Fortunately both had positive results although they certainly could have had more dire consequences.

“Our members continue to impress me with the work they do every day,” says Supt. Nick Romanchuk, officer in charge of the Kelowna RCMP. “Cpl Hare displayed exceptional bravery by saving this woman’s life, at great risk to his own.”

The woman was taken to hospital.