Crews search for man believed to have fallen into Coquitlam River

Search and rescue crews and police are searching for a man who is believed to have fallen into the swollen Coquitlam River on Sunday.

Coquitlam RCMP said Robert Belding, 59, was last seen near Pipeline Road and Galette Avenue at about 5 p.m. PT.

“Police and family are very concerned for Robert’s well-being,” the force said in a news release. 

Coquitlam Search and Rescue search manager Ian MacDonald said while nobody saw it happen, crews believe Belding was trying to save a dog from the river — which was surging from the weekend’s torrential rain — when he fell in. 

The dog was later found by local residents after it made it to shore, MacDonald said. 

He said crews searched for Belding along the river’s shore on Monday, and would resume the search on Tuesday by boat on the Fraser River near the Port Mann Bridge, close to the mouth of the Coquitlam River. 

Environment Canada data shows Coquitlam received 256 millimetres of rain between Friday and Sunday night, as an atmospheric river swept across southern B.C.

The rain caused a mudslide in another part of the city that washed away a home, killing its owner, a local elementary school teacher. 

Police describe Belding as about 178 centimetres tall, with brown eyes and short brown hair. Anyone who may have seen Belding or knows where he might be is asked to contact Coquitlam RCMP at 604-945-1550 and quote file number 2024-27890.