Nathaniel Thorassie, a six-year-old boy who police believe has died, was an energetic boy, his family said on Sunday.
On Saturday afternoon Thorassie was playing on the partially frozen Red River when fell in, along with his 10-year-old brother, who was saved when a teenager pulled him out of the freezing river.
One of the boys' older brothers, Ryan Flett, was sleeping when police arrived at his door.
"They said they couldn't find him," Flett said.
Flett said he didn't know why his brothers were on the river. They were only gone for half an hour and they were told to stay in the front yard. They weren't familiar with the river, having moved into the neighbourhood only four days before the tragedy.
Nathaniel was a smart, curious six-year-old, Flett said.
"He was good, he was smart, he liked to play a lot. He always took care of his younger brother. He was energetic," Flett said.
The 10-year-old boy is in hospital, in stable condition. His rescuer was 16-year-old Kole Devisscher. He was driving by when he saw the 10-year-old struggling to get out of the water.
"He was frozen, his hands were just purple," Devisscher said. "He'd been in there quite a while."
He rushed to help and managed to pull the 10-year-old to safety.
Police are now warning parents and caregivers to keep children away from the river. They said it's believed the boys were tossing ice and snow into the water when they fell in.
An intensive search and rescue operation was immediately launched to find Thorassie, but hours later the search called off. Police were monitoring the conditions of the river.
Crews were slated to resume the search on Monday for the boy's body.
-with a report from CTV's Caroline Barghout
