In late spring 2009, 27-year-old international student Fanzheng Meng disappeared after a boating outing on the Ottawa River. On May 23 he and 20-year-old Chen Yuan set out from Britannia Beach in a small yellow inflatable dinghy and were last seen heading toward the Gatineau side near the Deschenes Rapids. Their craft vanished from sight and the next day the inflatable was found east of the Deschenes Rapids with a single lifejacket but no sign of either man.

A search and rescue operation followed; friends tried to launch a private search but were advised against it because of dangerous river conditions. Police called off the official search on May 26. On June 5, 2009 Chen Yuan’s body was found downstream near Cumberland, but Fanzheng Meng was never located and remains missing.

Anyone who was on the river that day or who may have information about sightings of the dinghy or Fanzheng afterward is asked to come forward.