Bodies have been recovered from two Ontario lakes where three young girls disappeared below the water's surface in separate incidents Tuesday.

The bodies of two girls, aged 15 and 16, were recovered from Musselman Lake early Wednesday morning, said York Regional Police duty Insp. Chris Bullen.

The girls disappeared under the surface after their tube or dinghy flipped over.

Several people scoured the lake when the girls were reported missing. Emergency personnel soon joined the search and found the bodies at about midnight.

Police continue to investigate the circumstances. It's not known if the girls were wearing personal flotation devices.

Family members of at least one of the girls were vacationing at the lake at the time.

Musselman Lake is about 50 kilometres north of Toronto.

Body recovered from Lake Ontario

Meanwhile, Hamilton police said a body that was recovered from Lake Ontario early Wednesday was that of a 13-year-old girl.

The girl failed to surface in the choppy water after she jumped off a floating dock while swimming with friends late Tuesday afternoon, police said.

Her friends called for help, but rescuers were unable to locate her in time. Emergency personnel, including police divers and firefighters, searched the water and shore until the girl's body was found shortly before 1:45 a.m.

Her name hasn't been released.

Bay Street executive missing

In a third incident, a search is underway for a missing Bay Street executive on Lake Joseph in the Muskoka area.

Brad Griffiths' boat has been located, but he hasn't been seen since Monday.

Griffiths is one of the founders of GMP Capital and once headed up mergers and acquisitions at CIBC.

The incidents come at a time when southern Ontario has been struck with a spate of drowning or water-related deaths in recent weeks.

In a tragic coincidence, several fatalities have occurred during National Drowning Prevention Week, which began last weekend and ends Saturday.

Water safety tips

With the temperature expected to soar Wednesday and Thursday, more people will likely be cooling off in pools, lakes and other bodies of water.

To prevent further tragedies, the Canadian Red Cross is offering several water safety tips:

  • - Take a course that teaches swimming skills and water safety
  • - Children should be supervised at all times near any source of water
  • - When bathing infants or toddlers, an adult should remain with the child at all times
  • - Wear a life-jacket when you're on a boat or canoe, even if you know how to swim
  • - Adequate barriers such as a four-sided fence with a self-closing, self-latching gate should be installed around a backyard pool
  • - Portable toddler pools should be emptied after each use
  • - Avoid diving
  • - Be mindful of the power of currents that can sweep away swimmers or waders

Hundreds of Canadians die each year in water-related tragedies, but most of the deaths are preventable, the Canadian Red Cross said.

According to research, the groups who are most at-risk of drowning are children aged one to four and males aged 15 to 44.

Click here for more water safety tips.