17-year-old Quebecer drowns in Florida waters during swim camp trip

The body of a 17-year-old from Quebec was found in the Gulf of Mexico.

William Zhang was visiting Florida with his swim team for a swim camp.

According to a press release from Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, on the west-central coast of Florida,  Zhang and several other swim team members were swimming in the Gulf of Mexico, conducting swimming drills. On Wednesday morning, they say he did not return to the shore at the end of the swimming drills.

“Per detectives, the swim coaches advised that they checked for riptides or hazards before the swimmers entered the water,” the statement reads.

At around 9:00 a.m., officers responded after a 911 caller advising them that a swimmer was carried offshore.

In the hours that followed, Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, Indian Shores Police Department, Pinellas Suncoast Fire Rescue, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), and the United States Coast Guard all took part in the search.

At around 5:23 p.m., Zhang was located and pronounced deceased.

Police said the swim coaches told them they had checked for riptides or other hazards in the water before drills started.

Police say the incident does not appear suspicious in nature and that the investigation continues.

Next of kin have been notified.

Zhang attended Collège Notre-Dame, a private high school in Montreal.

A spokesperson for the school tells CityNews: “Our priority is to support people who are directly affected by this terrible event. We have deployed additional aid resources and are in close communication with local authorities in Tampa Bay to try to better understand what happened. All our thoughts are with the parents of young William Zhang.”

Quebec’s swimming federation — Fédération de natation du Québec — wrote on social media to express its sadness over Zhang’s death.

“Although William was not affiliated with our federation, his loss touches us, and the entire aquatic community is in mourning,” the federation wrote on Facebook.

The federation said it was working with local authorities to understand what happened, and reminded athletes to make safety a top priority while training abroad.

-With files from the Canadian Press