A British Columbia man who was moving from Peachland to Vancouver Island has been identified as one of the individuals swept away in a fatal mudslide along Highway 99.
Brett Diederichs was moving to Vancouver Island with his partner and mother when they were all caught in the Nov. 15 mudslide.
“Our beloved son, brother, life partner, nephew, cousin and friend Brett was taken by the landslide and continues to be missing,” reads a GoFundMe fundraiser.
Both his partner and his mother were with him and survived the tragedy. Diederichs was swept away and his body has not been found.
"We will use these gifts to contribute to his end-of-life celebrations and to support the love of his life, Madison during these difficult times,” reads the fundraiser.
In a statement made on social media, Diederichs' sister Kirsten shared the news "with a broken heart."
"My brother and best friend [were] caught in the landslides just outside of Pemberton, B.C... While my family is reeling from this tragedy, we are hoping we can make this time a little bit easier by helping out the love of his life, Madison, to set up their dream of living on Vancouver Island, and to cover the unexpected end-of-life costs that will be incurred. Anything will help," Kirsten's post says.
Police have not released his name; they've confirmed he was a 36-year-old Peachland resident.
Search and rescue members recovered the bodies of three men from the Duffey Lake slide last week.
High school sweethearts Anita and Mirsad Hadzic are also among the deceased; they were returning home to Vancouver following a weekend getaway at Sparkling Hill Resort in Vernon. The husband and wife leave behind a two-year-old daughter.
Steven Taylor, a father of four from Burnaby, was travelling on Nov. 15 when he too was killed in the Highway 99 mudslide.
Staff Sgt. Janelle Shoihet with the BC RCMP said a 61-year-old Lower Mainland man was also recovered at the location.
Police have suspended their search at Duffey Lake, noting all current search efforts have been exhausted.
