Global Courant
Four children were found unconscious on a beach in Portneuf-sur-Mer, Que. Saturday after being swept away by the tide in a fishing incident.
The Quebec Provincial Police (SQ) could not immediately confirm the health of the children, but said they were taken to hospital unconscious.
The children were among a group of 11 people who washed up on the north coast of Quebec on Friday night. One person, a man in his thirties, is still missing, six others have been rescued.
“According to initial reports, a group of people were fishing on foot along the coast when the tide caught them,” said SQ sergeant Catherine Bernard.
The tides in the region are dramatic, she explained; the water drops by up to a kilometer at low tide, meaning it’s a long way back to safety when the coast starts to shrink.
Rescue workers were first called to the waters at Portneuf-sur-Mer, about 300 km northeast of Quebec City, around 2 a.m. The children were discovered a few hours later.
The search for the missing man was underway from about 10:30am, with SQ divers and members of the armed forces being called in to assist.
Police are not disclosing the identities of the victims, but say they are known to each other.
With files from The Canadian Press.
This is an evolving story.
