Windsor's Harbour Master thinks the city should shut down the west side of Sandpoint Beach to swimmers and fishers after two men drowned there last month.
Peter Barry didn't mince words describing the treacherous conditions there.
"Even if there had been people there that day that could swim to save those two young men, we probably would have lost more people," said Barry. "Had there been a lifeguard, we probably would have lost a lifeguard."
"Detroit River is actually three different environments," he continued. "The bottom of the river is absolutely still. In the middle, we're dealing with six to ten knots. Above that, it's a little bit slower, but it's still fast. So, what we're getting is this fast rotation. With the draw coming out of Lake St. Clair, it's a suction."
The men, 25-year-old Yogesh Bajgai and 22-year-old Rohit Dheer jumped into the water and didn't resurface on May 23. Barry said the men entered the water and walked off the shelf into 30 feet of water.
Bajgai was the breadwinner of his family, and Dheer was an international student from India about to graduate from St. Clair College.
Windsor city councillors voted to erect an eight-foot high fence from Riverside Drive East into the water to discourage others from swimming in the strong currents.
However, Barry urged councillors to change the signage. Signs already exist in that spot, but he doesn't believe they adequately communicate the danger.
"Build something on that side that prevents people from swimming there completely," begged Barry. "I would suggest nothing in that area except walking. The signage should probably be a little more drastic that swimming here will cause death. Find a way to make it so absolutely nobody wants to go into that corner."
City staff did not recommend universal symbols but conceded signs in multiple languages were feasible.
Councillors expect to receive detailed designs for the west end of Sandpoint Beach next year.
In the past 15 years, eight people have drowned in that section.
* With files from Maureen Revait.