Coroner identifies body of Boise man who disappeared while kayaking ‘dangerous’ river
The Ada County Coroner’s Office released the name of the man who died earlier this month while kayaking the Boise River. The victim was 63-year-old Tracy Demaree of Boise.
Witnesses said the kayaker put in at Barber Park on May 1. The Boise Fire Dive Rescue Team recovered an inflatable kayak that day, but no body, according to previous Idaho Statesman reporting.
The dive team found Demaree’s body May 16 when the team was conducting a training exercise on the river, according to a news release. The body was found about a quarter-mile from where the kayaker was last seen, just below the East Parkcenter Bridge.
The coroner arrived at 400 E. Parkcenter Blvd. when the body was found and pronounced Demaree dead at that scene at 6:18 p.m. May 16, according to the coroner’s report. Ada County Coroner Richard Riffle listed the cause and manner of death as pending.
The Ada County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the death, according to the coroner’s report.
Since late April, the Boise Fire Department has had posted a “Dangerous River Condition” notice for the Boise River, meaning conditions are “extremely dangerous” for people and pets, the Idaho Statesman previously reported. Officials recommended that people not recreate in the river, which is flowing at about 6,000 cubic feet per second (cfs).
During the annual summer float season on the river, its flow is between 500 and 1,500 cfs. At 6,000 cfs, the cold water is moving so swiftly that it can carry people and pets away rapidly, cause strong swimmers to lose motor and muscle control, and be full of dangerous debris, according to a Boise Fire news release.
