Deputies in Oregon on Tuesday recovered the body of a Vancouver woman who fell into the Willamette River near Buena Vista Park south of Independence, Ore., over the weekend.
The Polk County, Ore., Sheriff’s Office said it recovered Tracy Allen’s body around 6 p.m. from the river, north of the Buena Vista Ferry. Allen’s body was recovered near where she was last seen Saturday.
Deputies said they recovered Allen’s body from under swift water at the base of a log jam. Recovery efforts lasted more than eight hours.
Crews on two boats cut through multiple logs and root systems to free her. The Clackamas County, Ore., Sheriff’s Office Water Rescue Team and the Benton County, Ore., Sheriff’s Office helped with the recovery efforts.
Allen, 37, was floating the river with friends when their series of interconnected float tubes ran into a large root-ball snag off the west shore of Wells Island.
She was wearing a life vest at the time she went into the water, but “the heavy current flowing into and around a large debris field made up of trees and roots was substantial enough to hold her under water, particularly if snagged,” deputies previously said.
Two women floating with Allen were able to get to shallow water and make it to the island, but Allen was not seen again after going into the water.
On Sunday, Clackamas’ water rescue team pulled its divers from the water and halted the search due to hazardous conditions. In addition to fast-moving water, debris from trees and roots littered the area, which made it hard for divers to navigate the area.
The search resumed Tuesday morning when deputies used a boat to get close to Allen’s last known location and then used chain saws to cut away trees.
