A look at the team that recovered a drowning victim’s body from Lake Diefenbaker

Imagine a loved one going missing while out on the water, and not knowing for sure what happened to them.

That’s the sad situation for the friends and families of some drowning victims.

However, that’s a problem the Hutterian Emergency Aquatic Response Team (HEART) tries its best to solve. The team is based out of Manitoba and specializes in recovery and rescue operations when there’s a suspected drowning.

Manuel Maendal is a co-pilot with HEART. He joined Gormley guest host Mike Couros to discuss their operations.

The team, based out of Manitoba, helped discover the body of a man who had drowned in Lake Diefenbaker in July.

It’s not an easy job, but Maendal explained that it helps bring closure to families.

“For a family that’s experienced the loss of a loved one in that way, (it) adds on top of that pain, just not knowing where their loved one is and not finding them. That is even harder. So, by the time we would come in and search, they’re really longing for a recovery so they can move on … and that is extra difficult if the body can not be found,” he said.

HEART is located on a Hutterite colony in Manitoba, but they often help with recovery missions in other parts of the country, as far away from them as Alberta, Nunavut and Ontario.

They’re able to do rescue missions in their local area but are only able to do recoveries elsewhere.

Maendal hopes more people hear about the work they do, so they can help more families.

“The more awareness there is of our team and our capabilities, the quicker we are able to respond … The situation in Lake Diefenbaker, it took over two weeks. We were aware of the situation … We were following that story, but it was almost impossible trying to get ahold of the family,” he explained.

They don’t charge for their services. Instead, they get the money for their equipment and other expenses through fundraising, mostly through Hutterite colonies.

It can be a difficult, emotional undertaking, but it’s one Maendal thinks is the right thing to do.

“That’s our prayer, is that we’re not needed. But, that being said, we are on the ready. We’re ready to help out should we be needed.”