Bernadette Dennis, Nancy Peters and Lonny Bear Wallace speaking to CFJC on Wednesday August 6. (Image Credit: Curtis Goodrum/CFJC Today)

By Dylana Kneeshaw

RIVER SEARCH

‘Please keep an eye out for my son’: One week after tragic Overlanders Bridge jump, family’s desperation only growing

Aug 6, 2025 | 4:26 PM

KAMLOOPS — Family and friends of a young man who went into the Thompson River last week are still combing the water and the riverbanks for him. Braden Wallace-Peters, a 23-year-old man living in Kamloops, was on the bridge with friends the night he jumped off and while RCMP and Search and Rescue teams were immediately on the river to look for him, his family is hoping for extra eyes in the search effort.

For one week straight, the Thompson River and its banks have been meticulously checked for any sign of Braden Wallace-Peters.

“Kamloops Search and Rescue, the fire department, and the RCMP went out looking right away, with no luck and we’re on Day 7,” Braden’s mother, Nancy Peters, told CFJC on Wednesday (Aug. 6).

The 23-year-old went into the Thompson River the evening of July 30 after jumping off the Overlanders Bridge. Police say witnesses reported seeing the man surface for a brief moment, but attempts to rescue him weren’t successful.

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“It was not a suicidal intention. It was a recreational jump that tragically, sadly, went wrong,” says Peters.

More than two dozen of his friends and family have been rotating shifts for their own searches, along with members of the public who became aware of the incident.

“There’s strangers we run into that tell us, ‘We’re out there, we’re helping, we have our eyes open, we’re watching from our house,'” explains Bernadette Dennis, Nancy’s cousin. “It’s really reassuring knowing that you have the eyes out there that are helping.”

The Peters family says they’re waiting to hear what kind of operation the RCMP’s dive team will be able to set up this week.

“On the weekend, it was really busy which was good because then for us it was more eyes out there,” adds Dennis. “Now that it’s a weekday, it’s pretty quiet out there. Fewer swimmers now that it’s raining and fewer boaters.”

His family says recovering Braden is the top priority.

“He’s an uncle, cousin, brother, friend. He has two sisters,” adds Dennis.

Right now, the Peters family is hoping for anyone with drones, boats or kayaks, or previous search experience, to contribute whatever search help, or knowledge they can.

“Please keep an eye out for my son. He’s a young native, age 23 with red shorts and hearts on them,” adds Peters.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Kamloops RCMP Detachment at 250-828-3000 and reference file number 2025-24701.