by Contributor on Wednesday Jun 30 2021 Columbia Valley Search and Rescue helicopter. A Mountie in BC’s Columbia Valley is being celebrated for risking his own life to save another. The police officer, a four-year member of Canada’s national police force and accomplished swimmer, jumped into action on Tuesday to guide a paddle boarder, struggling against the river’s current, safely to shore. On June 29, 2021 just after 5 p.m., Columbia Valley RCMP received a request to check the wellbeing of a woman, believed to be in distress and paddle boarding the Columbia River. The caller to police had received a phone call from a friend who sounded extremely distressed. She was able to determine that her friend was likely paddle boarding on the Columbia River, having launched from James Chabot Park.