Searchers comb Saugeen River for missing angler, presumed drowned

It's been four and half months since an angler went missing along the Saugeen River in Southampton.

Lijun S. was last seen fishing in the river on Saturday, Jan. 27, when an ice jam gave way up stream, sending a four foot high ice surge his way.

“There were a few other people fishing along the river that day, and they described it as almost inescapable. So, the fear is that Lijun got washed away by it,” said Nick Oldrieve, founder of Please Bring Me Home.

Oldrieve, and a crew of people that have no connection to Lijun, have spent hours searching the shores of the Saugeen in Southampton.

It's believed Lijun got swept away just south of Denny's Dam. There's been no sign of him since.

“If this fellow was a member of my family or friends, I’d like to know people would be out there searching for him, too. I feel terrible for the family, that they don’t have any closure,” said Nancy Harper, one of the kayakers searching the Saugeen River.

Oldrieve, who runs the Canada-wide missing person’s search organization, Please Bring Me Home, said this is the sixth search of Lijun over the past two weeks.

He said these kinds of searches, bring together complete strangers with one common goal, to bring closure to the missing person’s family.

Volunteer searchers comb the edge of the Saugeen River in Southampton as they look for Lijun S, an angler missing January 2024. June 1, 2024. (Scott Miller/CTV News London)

“I’ve lost people in my life, and it just makes me feel like I’m giving back. I also live along the Saugeen River, so I’m always looking to see, sadly if something comes by,” said searcher, Nicole Brown.

Oldrieve and his team of volunteer searchers have conducted hundreds of searches for missing people across Canada — most of those searches happen on land. Searching along the water's edge, and in a river, complicates things.

"Lijun is believed to have had hip waders on, which depending on the type, they're more known for filling with water and, only enabling the drowning to occur. So, if he is still under water, it makes it very difficult. We're hoping that he would have washed ashore," says Oldrieve.

"It's truly a tragedy to be out ice fishing in January. And then with the ice just letting go like that, it just goes so quickly. It's devastating because my own, my kids are young adults, and they fish all the time. So now it's like, you know, make sure that they have their safety vests on and to make sure that they don't go too far into the water," said Brown.

Missing fisherman Lijun S. was last seen fishing in Saugeen River on Jan. 27, 2024. (Source: Saugeen Shores Police Service)

"I can't imagine anything worse than losing a family member and not knowing where they are. And this river. You know, I'm certainly not an expert kayaker, but I've been down the river many times, and, I feel like, you know, if there's anything we can do to help that family get closure, that would be amazing," says fellow searcher, Nancy Harper.

“We’re just going to keep throwing anything we can at it, until we locate him. We don’t want this to become a cold case,” added Oldrieve.

Anyone who finds any suspicious fishing equipment, or clothing, along the shores of the Saugeen or Lake Huron, near Southampton is asked to contact the Saugeen Shores Police at 519-832-2500. You can learn more about Please Bring Me Home or leave a tip on Lijun's case or countless other missing person's cases across Canada, by visiting www.pleasebringmehome.com.